Poisoned Heart
by whitetigerwolf
Summary: After years as Poison Ivy, Pamela Isley formerly Potter's past comes to claim her. FemHarry IS Poison Ivy. FemSlash. Pamela/Barbara eventually. Wrong-Boy-Who-Lived. Good Snape. M for innuendo and language.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N – Before I begin there are a few things I would like to say. The first is that this is an Alternate Universe. Things are going to be different from both universes, so don't tell me that something should be this way, or needs to be that way. Secondly, this story will be FemSlash, don't like, don't read. Finally, this story contains FemHarry, Pamela Lillian Isley, formerly Potter, and is a wrong-boy-who-lived story. This goes back to the story being AU. Obviously, Ivy's back-story in this will be different from the comics, cartoons, and movie. Once more, please don't complain.**

**Now On with the story.**

**By the way, I don't own Harry Potter or Batman.**

**Chapter 1**

Pamela Lillian Isley, more commonly known as Poison Ivy, sat against the wall of her specially designed cell in Arkham Asylum, contemplating how she had gotten to this point in her life.

She supposed that it had started out on that Halloween, fifteen years ago this October, when her twin brother Jason James "JJ" Potter was declared the Boy-Who-Lived. She had been too young at the time to remember the events, but she remembered growing up in the shadows, ignored by her parents as they fawned over her brother. Left to her own devices, she spent a lot of time in the family library, soaking up knowledge like a sponge.

Early on, she had developed a talent for potions, and had a keen interest in herbology and botany in general.

From the time she could stand, she had brewed potions, her parents ignoring the obvious danger to her as they were too busy with her brother to even notice. Only the family house-elves payed her any mind, helping her get ingredients and ensuring her safety as best they could. But even they couldn't protect her from her own brother.

JJ had been goofing off, as usual, and she had been working on a new potion. It was her own invention, and was meant to make the plants it was sprayed on more resilient, and healthy. She had been so engrossed in her work, that she had never noticed her brother enter her potion lab until he knocked her into the newly finished potion.

It hadn't been meant for people. And as she fell into the cauldron, knocking it over and soaking her skin, she also ingested it.

JJ never even noticed what had happened as he left the room.

Mipsy, one of the family house-elves, had tried to help her. When, after alerting them, her parents did nothing, Mipsy had taken her to the only other person she thought could help the young seven year old, Potion Master Severus Snape.

To say her mother's old friend was furious was an understatement. He didn't understand how his once kindhearted, if temperamental, friend could ignore what had happened to her own daughter. He had done his best to help Pamela, but the magic of the potion had already done it's job.

There was nothing he could do.

Overnight, her young body grew to that of a woman in the prime of her life and gained it's current plant like attributes. Overnight she gained the powers that she now had. When morning came, she was no longer the seven-year old twin of the Boy-Who-Lived, but a fully grown women, with the knowledge of a seven year old.

Luckily, Severus had helped her. It wasn't hard, as she had also matured in attitude. But she didn't know a lot of the things adults needed to. Severus, as an accomplished legilimancer, was able to...implant, the years of knowledge she needed in her mind. Of course the side effect was that she learned a lot about Severus himself, along with Pomona Sprout, who had, after Severus explanation, also helped her.

It was through that process that she learned lessons of magic and life. And after a year in practice, Snape helped her change her identity, though she kept her first two names.

And thus Pamela Lillian Potter became Pamela Lillian Isley.

She had left then, going to America to study muggle botany, specifically botanical biochemistry. She earned her doctorate within two more years, before agreeing to work with Dr. Jason Woodrue.

When he tried to kill her two months later, she snapped.

That was when she killed the good doctor, and moved across the country to Gotham City. At this time, she felt more for the plants she could hear and talk too than humanity, aside from Snape and Sprout, who were more like her mentors, they were her only friends. And when they were threatened, she reacted...violently.

Hence why she had become Poison Ivy.

And in the eight years since her accident, five as Poison Ivy, she had never aged. She wondered if she would, eventually, or if she would forever remain in her prime unless killed. But neither option really mattered to her, both had their plus sides, and their minuses.

Sighing, she began to plan of a way to escape Arkham once more, without magic. That was a secret she preferred to keep under wraps.

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Severus Snape hated the Order of the Phoenix, mainly because it was full of people he hated.

At the top of his list was Dumbledore, who also happened to be the leader of the "secret" organization. The man who had, not only blackmailed him into being a spy, but allowed the travesty that was Pamela Potter to happen. It was he who declared Jason, there was no way in hell he would call the spoiled brat JJ, the-boy-who-lived, and filled Lily and James heads with focusing on their son at the cost of their daughter.

Then there were the Potters themselves. He and James had never gotten along, but he had thought better of Lily. That she had basically ignored her daughter told him the woman he had once loved was dead, replaced with the bitch he currently thought of her as. And JJ, the arrogant, spoiled, brat that only passed his classes because Dumbledore would use "Headmaster's Judgment" to change the grades.

JJ's friend Ron should currently be in Azkaban. Seeing as he had, albeit unintentionally, but remorselessly, sent a young girl to her death. His insults to one Hermione Granger had sent her in tears to a girl's bathroom, the night a Troll was let into the castle. Due to the vast number of students, she wasn't noticed missing until they had been returned to their common rooms, by which time, it was too late. He, McGonagall, and...Quirrel, had come across the troll leaving the bathroom, leaving her broken body behind it.

The only reason Minerva hadn't resigned from her post then and there was his own assurances that she had done the best she could, setting out looking for her as soon as she realized the girl was missing. But the experience had shaken up the Deputy Headmistress, and Dumbledore's refusal to punish Ron for the words that had sent the young Gryffindor to her death had been too much for her. She had resigned on the spot, and James Potter had become the new transfiguration teacher and head of Gryffindor.

Then there was Sirius Black, the man who had tried to kill him by sending him after a werewolf on a full moon, at fifteen years old.

The aforementioned werewolf, Remus Lupin, was tolerable, only because he was at least somewhat repentant for what happened in their school days. But the two would never be friends. Snape may forgive, but he had never forgotten the torment Remus helped cause him.

Lastly, there was Arthur and Molly Weasley. Arthur wouldn't be so bad, if he actually care to research and experience the subject (Muggles) he was professed to be an expert in. And Molly, she was an overbearing harpy. A housewife who thought she knew all.

In fact, were it not for Dumbledore's blackmail, and the desire that, at the very least, Pamela's ostracism not be be in vain, he wouldn't be here.

The fact that he had learned the disturbing truth that it was Pamela that had stopped Voldemort and not her brother only fueled his desire to see the bastard that was once his master die, preferably for good this time. And as Dumbledore droned on about nothing useful, he waited for Dumbledore to relay this information to the Order.

"Finally," Albus said, after thirty minutes of dribble, "it has come to my attention that Voldemort believes that it was Pamela that stopped him, not JJ." He held up his hand for silence at the various outburst this statement caused, the loudest being JJ. "As I said, he _believes_ Pamela to be the cause of his first fall. This is beneficial for us, as it will allow us time to work against him as he tries to track her down. That said, the girl is in danger, if she is still alive. We must find out where she is, or if she is even alive, before Voldemort does, for her own protection."

There were various nods of agreement around the room, everyone knew how Pamela had run off, jealous of her brother. Frankly, Snape was disgusted.

And as Lily went on about finding her 'poor baby girl,' he wondered why she couldn't have shown, even this false fear, when Pamela had first come to him.

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After the meeting had concluded, Albus asked Snape to meet him back at his office in Hogwarts.

Stepping out of the floor and into the lavish office, Snape held back a sneer of disgust. Just why the bloody hell did a Headmaster of a School need such extravagant luxuries, or such bad taste in colors.

"Ah Severus," Albus greeted cheerfully. "Please take a seat, we have much to discuss."

"Indeed," Snape agreed, as he sat on the edge of a chair. "Such as why you told the Order that the Dark Lord _believes_ Pamela to be the one that vanquished him fifteen years ago. He showed me, and all his Deatheaters, his own memory of that night. It _was _Pamela that stopped him, not that arrogant brat of Potters."

Albus raised an eyebrow. "I know, and have for some time that Pamela is The-Girl-Who-Lived. I have never told you the full prophecy that you heard that night." Standing up, he made his way to his pensive. As he walked he said, "I notice that you don't comment that Pamela is also Potter's...brat, as you so eloquently put it."

Severus sat straighter in his chair, on alert, but said nothing, and it seemed Dumbledore was willing to let the subject drop.

The headmaster tapped the side of his pensive with his wand, and the form of Sybill Trelawney rose from the liquid memories and began to speak, in a voice that haunted Severus' dreams.

"_The one with power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies..."_

Snape closed his eyes as he heard the part of the prophecy he had that faithful night, and wished, not for the first time, that he hadn't. What Trelawney spoke next would be new to him however.

"_And the Dark Lord will mark her as his equal, but she will have a power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives...the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."_

Snape's eyes sharpened angrily. "You knew," he accused, his soft voice full of anger. "You've known all along that Pamela stopped him that night. Why did you declare JJ The-Boy-Who-Lived then? Why did you make Pamela's life a living hell while she under Potter's roof?" he demanded.

"I did what needed to be done Severus," Albus informed him. "We needed a savior to look to, yet we needed a hero for the future, one not concerned with fame or glory. A hero that would do what needed to be done because it was the right thing to do. So I declared her brother The-Boy-Who-Lived, and planted into Lily and James minds, the idea to ignore Pamela."

Severus was incensed, and were it not for the numerous oaths he had sworn to Albus, would have pulled his wand on the old wizard. It seemed that he had, not only ruined Pamela's life, but Lily and JJ's as well. He cared little for James, but if the suggestion was ever removed and Lily realized what had happened, she would be devastated. "You bastard. HOW DARE..."

"DO NOT TAKE THAT TONE WITH ME, SEVERUS SNAPE!" Dumbledore bellowed, his voice laced with magic. And for this brief moment, Severus could see why Voldemort feared this seemingly harmless, and possibly crazy, old man. "I have done what was needed. And now, we must find Pamela," he informed the potions master. "She is the only one that can defeat Voldemort once and for all, no one else."

Snape clenched his fist. He was angry at the situation he was now in. Either he protected Pamela and kept her location to himself, risking that no one else could stop Voldemort, or he told Dumbledore, and Pamela was dragged back to England, and he had no illusions that that was exactly what Albus would do.

Either way, he failed in his duty.

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**Before I hear a rant about another story, I want to say that I've had this idea swimming around my head for months, before planning it out and starting it. And I originally intended to keep it on my computer and not post it yet, as there are a couple other stories I am working on that I'm doing that with. But I really, Really, REALLY, want to see how this first chapter is received.**

**That said, the poll on my profile is closed, and I will be trying to work on White Owl the most, though whether I actually can keep my focus on it remains to be seen.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

It had taken Snape a few hours to get to Gotham, especially without tipping off Dumbledore or Voldemort to what he was doing.

Arriving at Arkham Asylum, and after a few confundus charms, he was led to the specialized cell holding Pamela.

The red-haired woman smiled as he entered the cell. "Severus, to what do I owe the visit?"

Snape sighed. "You remember last year, I told you the Dark Lord had risen again?"

Pamela nodded.

"A few weeks ago, he broke into the Ministry and retrieved a prophecy, about him and the one destined to destroy him," the Potion Master began. "Afterward, Dumbledore shared the full prophecy with me."

Pamela snorted. "If you're here to try and convince me to go back to England and help my poor excuse for a brother, you can forget it," she informed him. "It not as if the Boy-Who-Lived needs his sister to hold his hand," she added sarcastically

"Your brother is an idiot," Snape conceded, then looked up at Pamela, his face grim. "But he's not the one destined to defeat the Dark Lord, and what's more important, he's not the Boy-Who-Lived."

Pamela's head snapped to her teachers. "What are you saying Severus?"

"It was you," Snape said, hanging his head. "The Dark Lord showed his Deatheaters his memory, the wand was pointed at you. You're prophesied as the only one that can beat him. Dumbledore confirmed it." He kicked the wall of the cell, "The old bastards known this whole time, and what's worse, he took away your parents from you."

Pamela snorted. "They did that themselves," she said coldly.

"No," Snape said softly. "Dumbledore planted a suggestion in their minds. What they did to you, was not their choice, but Dumbledore's. I don't know his exact reasons for it, but he claims it was so you would be the hero we need."

Pamela snorted, before she began to laugh. After a few moments she calmed down and said, "That's a good one Severus. But I'm afraid I'm hardly the hero type." She gestured to her cell. "Why do you think I'm in here? It sure as hell isn't for helping little old ladies cross the street. You, above anyone, know what I'm like." She sighed, and leaned her head back against the wall. Closing her eyes she asked, "So my parents didn't mean to ignore me?"

Snape shook his head. "No."

The potion master could swear that there was a tear running down Pamela's cheek.

Taking a deep breath, Pamela said, "I think you need to leave now."

"Pamela..."

"Please."

Severus sighed. "Alright, but before I go, you need to know, Dumbledore, and the Dark Lord, are looking for you. Even if you don't come back on your own, they will not stop searching. And with the resources they both have, it is more than likely that they will find you eventually."

Pamela smiled sadly. "Thanks for the warning." Turning away from him she added, "Have a pleasant trip back to England, Say hi to Pomona for me."

Severus gave the young woman one last look, before leaving the cell.

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Ivy didn't move. In the five hours since Severus' visit, she had been sorting through her thoughts.

She tried to decide whether or not to go back to England. Normally, it was something she would hardly consider, but there were some...mitigating factors.

Severus and Pomona, perhaps the only two people besides her friend Harley and …. Her, that she actually cared about, were in danger. And so was her family, the family that ignored...no, the family that was forced to ignore her.

She wasn't sure how to feel now. For so long, she hated her parents, but to find out that they had been basically forced to meant it wasn't their fault.

But they still ignored her. It still hurt.

If anything, it hurt more.

Laying on her cot, Poison Ivy came to a conclusion that surprised her...she needed advice, someone to talk to.

But who?

Harley was instantly out. She loved the girl, she was her best friend and had a degree in psychology, but she was...there weren't really words to describe the blonde. Harley was...changed from her time with Joker. And Ivy didn't know if that would cloud her friends opinion, No, she knew it would. In the end, with Harley, it all came back to that abusive clown.

She wished she could convince her to leave him, before he killed her.

The doctors here in the Asylum were a joke, not to mention she couldn't trust them with anything of value that lurked in her mind.

Who else was there, Batman and his groupies? They'd sooner lock her up than hear her out, let alone give her any advice.

Unless...

Ivy's eyes narrowed. It could work, and at the very least she'd get to interact with her.

The poisonous woman smiled as she settled back into her cot. It would be best for her to wait until the next shift change, it would make that much easier to get out unnoticed.

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Barbara Gordon sighed as she moved about her kitchen in her electric wheelchair.

She hated it.

Even after two years, she still missed the use of her legs, the sense of feeling below her waist. She had never realized how many things she enjoyed doing that required her legs until Joker took them away from her. And though she put on a strong front, told her father, her friends, and her teammates that she was fine, that she had adapted, she wasn't fine, she hadn't adapted.

She doubted she ever would.

There were many times she'd wake up in the middle of the the night, feeling restless, and decided to go for jog, only to be sharply reminded that she couldn't when she tried to get out of bed.

But her legs were only part of her problem. She had never told anyone about it, she had even had it removed from her medical file at the hospital (which took a fair bit of work on her part considering she had to not only hack their computers, but break in and steal the hard paper copy), to prevent anyone else finding out. The bullet that had passed through her spine and crippled her, had also prevented her from having children, tearing through her womb and damaging it to the extent that she never would be able to get pregnant.

She had never even considered having children when she was shot. She had been 19, young and in a happy relationship with Richard Grayson. It was only after the news had been broken to her that she realized that, at some point in her life, she had wanted children.

She sometimes wondered if this was how Poison Ivy felt.

She knew the villainess was sterile, and that she had only one rule in her activities. For all of Ivy's fault's the woman had never, intentionally, harmed a child. In fact she had protected them on several occasions.

She was just about to put a pot of water on to boil, so she could make herself some dinner, when pager went off. Sighing, she put the pot down and wheeled herself over to the Delphi computer system she had built and designed. The super computer was...unique. And she was constantly updating it to make sure it remained state-of-the-art.

It was the secret to her success as Oracle.

Picking up the headset and microphone, she slipped it onto her head before turning to the monitor.

"What do you need Batman?" she asked as she went through the information appearing on her various monitors.

"_Ivy's escaped Arkham again. She's apparently been gone a few hours," _Batman's voice spoke through her headset.

Barbara's hands were already flying across her keyboard. Her eyes narrowed as she found two interesting clips on the surveillance. The first was Ivy's escape. It showed Ivy walking to the door of her cell, and simply placing her hand on the door, before it swung open, Ivy walking out with no problems and no alarms. The second clip was timestamped several hours earlier, when a tall, hook-nosed man entered Ivy's cell.

She wished the video had sound, or that he had turned to face the camera. Lip-reading Ivy's side of the conversation was confusing. But one thing stood out, the man, apparently named Severus (what an odd name), knew Pamela, and was trying to get her to go to England. And her family was involved in some way. "Bruce, Ivy may have left the country. She had a visitor named Severus visit her earlier, I can't get much as he never really looks at the camera, but if what I'm reading from Pamela is right, he was trying to get her to go to England."

She heard Batman's sigh through her earpiece. "_Do you think you can keep an eye on airport surveillance for her?"_

Barbara began typing in commands as she spoke. "I can, but I doubt it'll help. Pamela's too smart to travel locally, and there are just too many places she could go to get out of the country. And before you ask, I'm already looking for information on this Severus guy."

"_Keep me posted."_

Barbara smirked. "I always do. Oracle out."

Removing her headset, she set up several different programs on the Delphi. So engrossed in her work, she never noticed the window of the clock tower, just below the number six, open, and a green-skinned, red-haired woman step into the apartment.

In fact, it wasn't until the woman stood a few feet behind her and spoke that Barbara realized someone was there.

"You know, if you want to know something, you could just ask," the slightly amused voice spoke.

Barbara's eye's widened as she spun around...

To come face-to-face with Poison Ivy.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Ivy," Barbara said nervously, eying the other red-head warily. "Why are you here? For that matter, how do you know where here is?"

Ivy rolled her eyes. "No need to so defensive, I have no intention of harming you," she assured the other woman. "As for your questions, you wouldn't believe the answer to the second, and as to why I'm here..." Ivy smirked. "Would you believe that I broke out of Arkham, just to speak with you?"

Barbara's eyes widened. "What?"

"You see, I find myself facing a dilemma, and I need advice. And of all the people to ask," the villainess' face became serious, "you are the only one that I can actually talk to."

"What? You can't be serious."

Ivy sighed. "I wish I weren't, But who else could I talk to? Harley? What I need help with is something I hardly want Joker knowing. Catwoman? Were hardly friends, and I can't be sure she wouldn't use my problems against me in the future. The doctors at Arkham are a joke. Who does that leave, Batman? He'd rather put me back into Arkham before helping me, Robin is hardly old enough for me to share my problems with. So unless you have any other suggestions, that leaves you, the one person who is capable of listening to me, not using my personal problems against me, and not putting me back into that godawful asylum."

"What about Severus?" Barbara asked, and Ivy grinned.

"You are good," Ivy said, before sighing. "Unfortunately, Severus is to close to the problem to help me. So here's the deal, you listen to what I have to say, give me some good advice, and I'll give you something in return."

Barbara snorted. "What could you possibly give me that I'd want?"

Ivy gestured to the wheelchair as she spoke, "Your legs for one."

The comment caused Barbara to look at Ivy sharply as the woman continued speaking.

"Not that I will mind you," she added. "Doing that requires a bigger favor than simple advice. But what I will give you is still valuable, and not stolen I might add."

Barbara hesitated. She had been mere moments from sounding a silent alarm that would tell Bruce, Dick, and Tim she was in trouble. But the chance to have her legs back...

She wondered what favor Ivy would ask for that.

Swallowing, Barbara asked, "What's wrong?"

Ivy smiled sadly. "Family issues," she said simply. "You see, I recently discovered that my parents, who ignored me as a child, were forced to do so."

"Forced?" Barbara asked confused. "How?"

The green-skinned woman grimaced. "Magic."

"Okay," Barbara acknowledged.

"Wait, you believe me?" Ivy asked surprised.

The former Batgirl shrugged. "I've had some experiences."

"In that case you might believe how I found you," Ivy admitted. Shaking her head, she continued, "My parents had the compulsion to ignore me planted in their minds. I just found out, though the idea is probably still in their heads. They ignored me for my brother, who supposedly had done the impossible, lived when he should have died. I also found out, that that impossible act was performed by me. And now, the same people, including, my parents, that shunned and abandoned me, want me to come back, and..." Ivy chuckled, "...save their ass's. I could care less about them, in fact I've long accepted that my parents would never love me. But after finding this out..."

"You don't know how to feel," Barbara surmised. "On one hand, you still feel you'll never be accepted by, maybe even hate, your parents. On the other, you now know they forced to do what they did. You can't reconcile what you know now with what you experienced earlier."

"Yes. And I can't decide whether to go back home and help them, or wait for them to approach me, which could be a while considering the places I can hide."

"I don't what to tell you Ivy. But, I know several people that would give almost anything to have their parents back. You have that chance, if you can figure out how to break them out of the spell placed on them. And even if you manage that, it won't be easy. You and your parents will have years of bad memories and feelings to work through."

Ivy was silent after Barbara spoke. The wheelchair bound woman could tell that Ivy was now deep in thought. Finally after a few moments, she spoke. "Thanks, that does help actually."

Before Barbara could say or do anything else, Ivy quickly closed the distance between them and the former felt girl felt a sharp prick, before she rolled away from the other woman, to see a syringe in her hand.

"What the hell did you just do to me?" Barbara demanded, her voice laced with fear and anger.

Ivy rolled her eyes as the syringe disappeared into a pocket Barbara didn't notice earlier. "Don't get your panties in a bunch. That was my payment for your advice," Ivy explained. "Like Harley and myself, you now carry an immunity to most toxins, including Joker gas. Or you will once that serum I injected you with works through your system." She gave the other woman a hard look, "If I can figure out who you are, others can as well. Not to mention Joker has already visited you, though whether that was because he knew you were Batgirl or because your father's the commissioner I don't know."

Walking towards the exit Ivy was about to leave when Barbara asked, "You said you could give me my legs back, were you just having me on or can you actually do it?"

Ivy stopped, and turned her head to look at Barbara over her shoulder. "I can do it. It'll be painful though."

"What favor would I need to do for you do it?"

Ivy sighed. "I would need your blood, and a promise that will last a lifetime."

"What kind of promise?" Barbara asked.

The green-skinned woman turned to face Barbara fully. "You know that I'm sterile, thanks to the physicals I have to go through every time I enter Arkham I assume?"

Barbara nodded.

Ivy sighed. "I have developed a way to have a child, but I require someone else's blood to do it, otherwise my child would be just like me, at least physically, a clone if you will. I don't want a daughter that will face the same problem with children that I do. By adding another's blood, yours, my daughter would carry the best genetic traits from us both, which means she would be able to carry a child when she was old enough." She paused for a moment to allow the information to sink in. "The promise I would require is that, should anything happen to me, you would watch over her."

Barbara's mouth was dry. Ivy offered her two thing, without knowing it, that she desperately wanted. To have her legs back, and to have a child...

"So I would have a daughter with you?" she asked.

"Technically."

"And what of your criminal activities?" she asked. "Would you put a child through that?"

Ivy shook her head. "Contrary to what you believe, I don't do what I do for fun. I am a soldier, in a war to save plants. And while I will never stop protecting the flora of the Earth, I would cease my actions against humanity for her. Think of it this way, when a soldier leaves the army, do they give up their patriotism? I would, in essence, be 'leaving the army.' Only my army consist of only myself, and occasionally Harley."

"How long until your offer is withdrawn?"

Ivy raised an eyebrow. "Until I...move on. I have no idea if or when that would happen so..." Ivy held up her hand, and Barbara watched as a red flower she didn't recognize grew from the other woman's palm. Ivy winced slightly as she plucked the flower before handing it to Barbara. "Put it in a pot with twenty-four hours and it will survive. If you decide to take me up on the offer, tell the flower and I'll know." She smirked slightly. "I'd also advise that you keep any conversations you don't wish me to hear away from it."

Before Barbara could say anything else, Poison Ivy left the clock tower.

And the woman known as Oracle was left to make a huge decision.

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	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Albus Dumbledore sat at his desk, deep in thought.

His initial plan to find Pamela Potter had failed. Of course he hadn't really expected it to succeed. Severus was too clever and had found and dispelled all fifteen tracking charms he had applied, all of varying types and in varying places. But most times, it was the simplest ideas that worked, simply because they were so obvious people didn't take into consideration that someone would actually do them, and hence fail to see the results until too late. What irked him more was that his second plan had failed as well.

Fawkes was a definite asset to the old headmaster. His ability to flame anyway, with anything, was a valuable asset, as well as the instinctual ability to find anyone no matter where they were. Unfortunately, it seemed that Pamela no longer considered herself to truly be a Potter and changed her name. Without her having the same name he gave Fawkes, or at least considering it to be her true name, the Phoenix was unable to find her.

He sighed as he thought about what to try next.

Things would have been so much simpler if the Potters had informed him of the girl's disappearance immediately, as he had always intended to keep an eye on her, her being the one prophesied to defeat the Dark Lord after all. Unfortunately it seemed that he had screwed himself on that one. Overriding James mind with the suggestion to ignore Pamela had been easy, not because he didn't care about his daughter, but because he had never studied occlumency. But Lily, she had been the one to teach to Severus, who had one of the few minds he could not enter without retaliation.

She was actually much more ruthless than Severus in the Defense of her mind. Luckily the suggestion wasn't the same as reading ones mind, but he still had to put an awful lot of power behind it in order to plant the suggestion. And since he had planted the suggestion in her mind first, he'd used the same amount of power on James, fully expecting that Lily would have taught her husband as much as she had her former friend. He suspected that either she hadn't or James couldn't get the hang of it.

The result was that they ignored their daughter so thoroughly, they didn't even realize she was gone until the year she was to start Hogwarts, when he showed up to ask them why Pamela hadn't shown up.

So the only lead he had so far were Severus and Pomona, whom the elves had reported discussing Pamela when they thought no one was around. And he didn't dare try and break into their minds for the information, both had occlumency shields that were incredibly strong. And he couldn't put the suggestion in there heads either, as that could get them both killed (Snape by Voldemort and Pomona by a few of the more aggressive plants she dealt with), and he needed them both in their respective roles.

Snape was a spy, and as a suggestion would change his behavior, it could be noticed by his fellow Deatheaters.

There were 10 levels of magical plant life, the level marking how dangerous the plant was and how difficult it was to harvest. The ten levels were further divided into four subgroups, harmless (1-3), poisonous (4-6), dangerous (7-9), and lethal (10). Levels 1, 4, and 7 were simple pick to harvest; 2,5, and 8 required special equipment; while 3,6, and 9 often required special methods and occasionally equipment. Level 10 plants where a whole different ballgame. While level 7-9 plants could seriously harm and occasionally kill someone if handled improperly, level 10 would kill with almost absolute certainty if things weren't done just so. And Pomona was one of eight people in the world licensed to handle, harvest, own and even 'breed' level 10 plants. Those plants in greenhouse 13 (there were actually eight, but the number was a reminder that students were not to enter) produced a large amount of money for the school (and hence him). And without Pomona, they would be confiscated or destroyed by the Ministry. And as a suggestion could cause her to make a mistake, he couldn't afford it

Hell the last of those eight had been added six years ago, some witch named Isley.

He doubted he could convince any of them to come teach at Hogwarts, at least not at the salary Pomona did. He was lucky that she liked children as much as she did, and felt an obligation to pass on her knowledge and love of herbology, otherwise he doubted she'd be willing to work at Hogwarts for as little as she was, which was still higher than all the staff but himself.

No, he didn't dare tamper with the minds of Severus or Pomona, as much as he'd like to, they were too valuable in their respective roles. He'd have to figure something else out.

But what?

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Barbara was distracted

In the three days since Ivy had visited her, she had been contemplating the other woman's offer to not only restore her legs, but to give her a child. She couldn't find a downside.

And that worried her.

Ivy was a master at manipulation, at least seven men had died and left her everything they owned in their wills, much to the ire of their wives and children. She also had several women and children proclaiming her a hero. Not to mention the fact that she was the ONLY person to get through to and effect Harleen Quinzel besides the Joker. And this was without the use of the pheromones she could use to seduce people.

The problem Barbara faced was that the offer was too good, and she was a suspicious person by nature ever since she had answered her door just to be shot. The fact that Ivy was offering her two of the things she wanted most in the world only made her more suspicious. Then of course there was the fact that she had no idea exactly what Ivy intended to do to, that she couldn't find anyone named Severus matching the description on the Arkham video, and that the offer had come out of the blue.

In the end, she needed more information, and there was only one person she could get the information from. Unfortunately, she couldn't trust that Ivy would tell everything or tell the truth. But she had no one else to turn to. She knew if she talked to Bruce, Dick, or her father they'd get suspicious at how little she could tell them, and if she even mentioned Ivy...

Well odds were that she'd be in the hospital with doctors trying figure out what Ivy had done to her mind.

Barbara groaned as she set her head on her on her desk.

In the end, her decision hinged on one thing, did she trust Ivy?

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Ivy sat on a petal chair, reading one of the many books she owned.

She was currently in a manor she had purchased a while ago. The place had never been found by the authorities because she had hidden it with magic, specifically muggle-repelling, and a few other, wards. It was a sanctuary for her, one where she kept everything she didn't wish to lose. The reason she didn't use it as a primary base of operations was two-fold. One, it was several miles outside of Gotham. Secondly, it was her magical home and since, aside from a few simple spells, she needed a wand to perform magic and kept it here (she didn't wish to run the risk of it being lost or broken in a fight with batman or the police).

The outside of the building held vast grounds, littered with plants that would attack anyone that got through the wards without her permission. The house itself was covered with ivy and other vines that would do the same. Even inside of the manor, plants covered walls, flooring, and made up much of the furniture. The only three rooms without some sort of plants were the gym, a large lab room were she conducted experiments and research that she couldn't risk contaminated by plants, and her potion lab.

And she could control and speak to every single one.

Her current book was one that detailed how to plant a suggestion in someones mind, unfortunately it seemed the only way to counter the suggestion was to apply another suggestion. And that required that your suggestion overpowered the previous one. And considering that it was Dumbledore that had planted the suggestions to ignore her in her parent's minds, she doubted she could overpower his work. There was a reason that not only had he been the only person Voldemort feared, but he had defeated Grindlewald, the previous dark lord that had added Hitler in World War II.

Albus Dumbledore was no pushover when it came to magic.

And before she'd even consider returning to England, she was going to at least figure out a way to remove the suggestions from her parents minds. Sighing, she realized she'd have to get a few mice or rats. It would be best to start off small after-all.

_'Ivy?'_ the voice of Barbara Gordon said in her head.

Ivy smiled, realizing that Barbara was talking to the flower she had given her. Focusing her thoughts, she sent a reply back over the link she had created with the flower, '_Yes?'_

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"_Yes?"_ Ivy's voice echoed out of the flower before her.

Barbara bit her lip. She still wasn't sure this was a good idea, but she wanted it to much. "I would like to take you up on the offer you made to restore my legs," she hesitantly told the flower.

There was silence for a few moments. _"Alright,"_ Ivy finally replied. _"I'll come get you in a week. It'll take that long for me to prepare everything. You should get your affairs in order for a while, you'll be stuck here with me for a few months, the exact length of time will depend on how fast you recover."_

Barbara nodded, forgetting for a moment that Ivy couldn't see her. Already she was thinking of what she could tell her father, Bruce, and Dick. Before replying, she hesitated for a moment, worried that Ivy would retract her offer. "Ivy, if you intend to make a child with my...DNA, I have one stipulation."

"_What?"_ Ivy questioned, a slight note of irritation in her voice.

"I want a part in it's life."

There was silence, and Barbara was afraid that Ivy wasn't going to reply, that she had just ruined the chance to get her legs back and to have a child. She opened her mouth to ask if the villainess was still there when Ivy's voice said, "_I'll see you in a week. We'll discuss the details then."_

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Ivy sat back in her chair, shocked.

Barbara wanted a part in her daughters life? The daughter of Poison Ivy?

She supposed she shouldn't be to surprised, as it would be THEIR daughter, but she had been expecting to raise the child herself. It wasn't that she disliked the idea of sharing the child with Barbara, she didn't pick Barbara Gordon randomly. In fact she found the other woman to be attractive, both in appearance and manner.

She just hadn't expected it.

Smiling, she realized that her plans may have just gotten a wee bit easier.

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**Please Review, and Check Out the Challenges in My Forums.**

**I hope you enjoy, this is the first of my regular stories I've worked on in a while, namely because I've been trying to figure out things for White Owl, Wizard Thief, and Shredder's Daughter. Wizard Thief and Shredder's Daughter, I'm drawing blanks. And White Owl, I had a plan, but I think it's still a bit early in the story to implement it, so I'm, working on something to replace it. So I worked on this as kind of a break for my brain as I knew exactly what I wanted to happen in this Chapter.**

**And if you haven't already, please check out my various one-shots.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Pamela smiled as she strolled down Franklin Alley.

The hidden alley was the largest magical district in North America. It was also the government seat of the Magical USA, not wishing to move to Washington DC when the muggle government had. It was named after the first President of the MUSA, Benjamin Franklin.

And while, in the muggle world, she was a criminal, to the MUSA, she was a woman that was not only well respected, but powerful. The only level 10 herbologist in the MUSA, it was her that provided a lot of the magical ingredients that otherwise had to be imported, at much higher prices. The result was that, not only was she a wealthy woman, she was who the MUSA called in when they had level 10 plants either growing where they shouldn't, or found illegally in someones home (usually after said person hadn't shown up for work in several days and someone was sent to their house to find a body, if there was one).

Even when she was in Arkham, the MUSA provided her with work, and the means to disappear from the Asylum for a couple hours. It was actually considered an initiation of sorts for rookie Auror's to impersonate her in her cell while she was out on an assignment. More than once, she had been offered a pardon for her crimes in the muggle world. In a nation that was primarily home to various magical creatures, many with violent natures, it wasn't unusual. Unlike Europe, MUSA had laws protecting the rights of various creatures to behave in their nature, as long as it was done discreetly.

An example was Terrance Redveil, the current president of the MUSA, had killed several muggles over his long life. Not on purpose, but it wasn't unheard of for a vampire to overindulge at times. And for the most part, Redveil was a good guy. In the muggle world he donated several million to various charities, and as President, he had ordered wolfsbane provided to werewolves be given to any who asked free of charge.

Problem was that the MUSA wasn't very respected outside it's own borders. The ICW refused to grant membership to a nation of creatures, even though there was a sizable population of witches and wizards. Abroad, citizens were treated as lower-class people, even if they paid to live in the most expensive hotels. Yet the MUSA was ahead of the magical world, at least in terms of keeping up with the magical world. Technomancy was only a recognized magical field in the MUSA, the result being that they were pretty much the only magical nation in the world that had television, computers, or internet.

The thing Ivy loved about the MUSA, was that with all the various creatures, the MUSA was a very environmentally friendly country, which was another vast difference to it's muggle counterpart. Centaurs wanted their forest clean and intact, mermaids wanted their water clean and sparkling, harpies wanted their air clean and fresh, goblins wanted their underground cities unpolluted by ground toxins, and most other creatures had their own quirks that ensured that MUSA territory was kept as environmentally sound as possible. Of course, compromises had been made, but they balanced everything out in the end.

But now, if she was going to have a daughter, and have Barbara in her life, if not Ivy's own, Ivy needed that often offered pardon. Since Barbara was muggle, their daughter wouldn't be exclusively raised in the magical world. Hell, even if Ivy raised the kid herself it wouldn't be purely in the magical world. As forward as the MUSA was compared to the rest of the magical world, it still lacked many things in the muggle world. An example was the sciences, magicals cared more about how than why. Even most technomages lacked the understanding of electronics that muggles had. Their work was mostly, 'How do I make this technology work in a magical environment?' not, 'Why doesn't this work in a magical environment?' or, 'How do I build this?'

Even in the MUSA, magicals tended to be lazy.

One reason she was so good with plants, besides her natural advantages of course, was that she had actually studied herbology and botany, along with chemistry and potions of course. It wasn't that she was a genius, but she was intelligent enough to realize the advantages of hard work. She wanted that for her daughter.

She grinned as, upon entering the lobby of the capitol building, Ivy recognized a familiar face. "Zatana, what brings you so far from Vegas?" Ivy asked with a grin.

The raven haired, blue eyed magician glared at her. "Hello Ivy," she said, distaste dripping from every word. Zatanna Zatara held a very strong dislike for the red-head. A magical performer in Vegas, Zatanna was also a licensed 'Hero,' meaning she had permission from the MUSA to perform magic in defense of and upholding the laws of muggles. This had brought her into contact with Ivy a few times in the muggle world.

The fact that she was Bruce Wayne's, Batman's, ex-girlfriend and was still a friend that aided the man certainly didn't play in Ivy's favor.

"Perhaps I should ask you that question?" Zatanna continued. "I mean, aren't you supposed to be in Arkham at the moment?"

Ivy grinned. "Technically. But I'm here to remedy that."

"Oh?"

The red-head grinned. "It's a surprise."

The magician's eyes narrowed. "Just remember Ivy, out of magical territory, I can take you down," Zatanna threatened, pointing at her.

"You can try," Ivy clarified. "In the meantime, have a nice day. I have some business to attend to."

Without another word, Ivy continued on her way, ignoring the glare being sent at her from behind.

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"Hey sweetie," Police Commissioner James Gordon greeted as he leaned down and gave Barbara a hug.

Barbara hugged her father back, "Hey Dad," she said with a smile. She watched as he sat down at the table across from her.

"So, what was it you wanted to see me about?" her father asked.

The red-haired woman took a breath. Barbara had asked her father to meet at her favorite cafe. Telling him it was important had been enough to guarantee her father came. He was a busy man, being the police commissioner and all, but he always tried to be there for her if he could. She loved him for that. "I'm going away for a bit," she explained. Noting the frown of her dad's face, she reached forward and held his hand in hers. "There's this procedure," she explained. "I don't know if it will work, but if it does, I'll get my legs back."

Jim's face softened, and Barbara knew why. Her father blamed himself for what had happened, thinking that she had been targeted as his daughter. And since it was unknown if Joker actually knew she had been Batgirl, that may have been the reason. But Barbara never let her father believe it was his fault.

Holding his hand tighter, Barbara said, "It wasn't your fault."

The older man smiled sadly, "I know sweetheart. But there are times I can't...I can't not blame myself." He sighed. "How long will you be gone?"

Barbara shrugged, "A few months. I couldn't be given an exact time, it depends on how fast I recover."

"Where?"

"Other side of the country," Barbara lied easily. It was second nature for her to lie to her dad, as much guilt as she felt, at this point. Living dual-lives as Batgirl and now Oracle had forced her to perfect the skill. "I'll call when it's done, and during my recovery, so you know I'm all right."

Jim Gordon looked at his daughter for a minute. "Thank you for telling me. When do you leave?"

"Three days."

Jim smiled, pulling out his cell phone, he turned it off. "In that case, how about you spend some time with your old man, we won't be able to see each other for a while."

Barbara smiled. "I'd like that."

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"You seem distracted," Bruce said, looking at the Commissioner through the slits of his cowl.

"Oh, sorry?" Jim said, rubbing his eyes. "I guess I'm just worried."

"We'll find Ivy," Batman assured the older man.

The Commissioner waved him off. "It's not Ivy that worries me." He grinned. "At least, not at the moment."

"Oh?"

"Barbara's going away, getting a procedure done that might allow her to walk again," Gordon explained. "She'll be gone a few months."

Batman's head would have snapped to the Commissioner if he wasn't already looking at him. This was news to him, and he talked with Barbara more than Jim did sadly.

"Anyway," Jim said, "I have an update for you about Ivy's escape. The lock on her cell wasn't broken, and Ivy couldn't have picked it, not from her side of the cell."

"Someone let her out then?" Batman mumbled to himself.

"So it seems."

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"When were you going to tell me?"

Barbara looked behind her to see Bruce standing in her kitchen doorway, still in his Batman uniform. She smiled sheepishly, "I take it Dad mentioned it?"

Bruce nodded.

The red-head sighed. "I was going to come up to the mansion tonight, tell you in person. But I wanted Dad to know first, and I just told him this afternoon. We spent the rest of the day together," she added with a smile.

"Are going to tell Dick?"

Barbara shrugged. "Our last meeting wasn't exactly the greatest."

And it hadn't been. Barbara hadn't seen Richard 'Dick' Grayson in two months, and they had a huge fight at the time. Dick wanted her to move to Bludhaven so that he could take care of her. She hadn't liked the idea of being taken care of, not to mention that she had just gotten somewhat comfortable in her life, with being in a wheelchair and being Oracle instead of Batgirl. Richard had stormed off in anger, and though they had since apologized to each other via phone, their discussions were still a bit awkward.

"Do you want me to tell him?" Bruce asked.

"Sure," Barbara said. "When you see him next. But I do want you to tell Tim and Alfred, since you'll see them before me."

"Alright." Bruce turned to leave, but before he did he said, "Barbara," drawing the red-heads attention back to him, "good luck."

"Thanks Bruce."

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Bruce Wayne sat at the Bat computer, a frown on his face. It was too soon to have found anything, he had only been on the computer an hour, but he couldn't find anything so far on a working method to restore mobility to a paraplegic. It worried him.

He worried about Barbara, just as he did Dick, Tim, and even Alfred. In some ways her saw her as a daughter, or maybe a little sister. The only reason he hadn't asked more questions of Barbara was he didn't want to cause her more pain. The hope to regain the use of her legs was better than nothing, and he had no wish to tear that from her. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to make sure she'd be alright.

His intent had been to find out who would be operating on her, along with where she would be going, and run background checks.

But so far he was drawing blanks, and he was getting a bad feeling.

Without proof though, there was nothing he could do that wouldn't hurt Barbara.

He just hoped she wouldn't be hurt if he did nothing.

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Barbara was nervous, it had been a week since her conversation with Ivy, and today was the day the other woman would be coming to get her.

She had a bag of clothes packed away for her use already, along with a few extra things just in case Ivy wasn't on the up-and-up.

She turned her head as the window opened and Ivy walked in.

"Ready to go," the green-skinned woman asked.

Barbara picked up her bag from the floor and set it in her lap. "Yeah."

Ivy nodded. "Alright," she said, walking towards Barbara. She moved to stand behind the other red-redhead. "Hang on to your bag and wheelchair, just in case."

"Wha...?"

Before Barbara could finish, she suddenly felt as though she was being squeezed through a small tube, before reappearing inside what appeared to be a manor of some sort, only the walls were covered in plants, so was the floor, but as Barbara opened her mouth to tell Ivy that she couldn't move her wheelchair over this, the vines and other flora began to move, until hardwood floors were visible and clear of obstacles.

"Welcome," Ivy said, "to the Forest, my home."

Barbara looked around, amazed. All the furniture was plant life of some sort. And the walls, though covered by plant life, were beautiful. There was no doubt that this was Ivy's home in the red-head's mind, it fit the other woman, classic, beautiful, wild, and (if she knew Ivy) deadly.

"One question," Barbara began, "What the hell just happened?!"

The other red-head grinned. "Apparition, it's a magical form of travel."

"Magic?"

Ivy grinned. "On top of my numerous abilities, I am also a witch, complete with wand, cauldron, and broomstick. I don't go for the pointy hat's much," she added, gesturing to her leaf coverings, which really only protected her decency.

Barbara was silent, unsure of what to say or do with the new information she had never heard about the other woman.

"Come," Ivy instructed. "I'll show you to your room. You can settle in before dinner. Hopefully I'll answer all your questions, and we can begin your procedure tomorrow."

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Ivy watched the woman sitting across from her, eating one of many fruits available in her home to eat.

When the other woman finished eating, Ivy said, "Fire away."

"How did you become a witch?" Barbara asked curiously.

Ivy smiled sadly. "I was born one. My parents are magical, as is my brother. Sadly, while there is a certain amount of studying involved, it is a skill one must be born with."

"Severus?"

"Barbara, while I do applaud the fact that you are interested in my life, we will have plenty of time to discuss it later," Ivy said, somewhat amused. "So unless you have questions about what I'll be doing to you, or our daughter, I would suggest we go to bed. Besides, my childhood was short and unhappy, those aren't memories I'm fond of digging up, or discussing when we both need to be well rested tomorrow."

Barbara hesitated. "What exactly will you be doing to me?" she finally asked.

Ivy's face lost it's amused look as the woman frowned. "I'm going to cut into your back, and place seeds right next to your damaged nerves," she explained. "Then I am going to apply a solution to them that will encourage growth before healing the incision. At that time, I will feed you a solution that will make them grow. The seeds will become a unique vine and grow, when they do, they will devour and replace your nerves and spinal cord." Ivy bit her lip before continuing. "I said before that it would be painful, and it will be. You will be strapped down and secured, and I have a mouth guard you will need to wear. I cannot give you anything for the pain, it would interfere with the process, but as your remaining nerves are devoured, at least the living ones, though possibly the ones that have been severed as well, you will feel it as they die. It will be painful, and it will last several hours as the vines grow through your body."

Silence hung between the two women for several minutes as Barbara digested the information Ivy had given her.

The green skinned broke the silence when she continued however. "Afterward, you'll be numb however. You won't be able to move or feel anything, not until the vines make the connections to your brain, which will take another few hours. When you're finally able to feel though, you'll be weak. And probably tired as well. At that time I'll give you a few nutritional supplements and a sedative. When you wake up, we'll see how bad your muscles atrophied in that chair, and work on a regime to build your strength back up, not right away of course."

Ivy took a bite of the pomegranate she held before asking, "Anymore questions?"

"Our child?"

"Daughter," Ivy clarified. "With both of us being women, there is no chance that we'll have a boy. What about about her?"

"How...?" Barbara trailed off, as it was clear what she was asking.

Ivy was silent for a moment. "I've developed...a plant, it's more of a pod really, but, by placing our blood in it, the pod will create a child from the best traits of the donated blood. It will actually take a while, ten months instead of the typical nine of pregnancy. Roughly a month to merge our blood, and another nine for the fetus to grow. With your permission, I'd actually like to take your blood before the procedure. Not that a few days will make a difference, but I'm impatient."

"You can do that," Barbara said, giving her permission. "But I'm more concerned about how she'll be raised. I told you that I wanted a part in her life."

"That," Ivy said, "is up to you."

Barbara gave Ivy a surprised look.

The other woman sighed. "What I mean is that I see three options, one I am completely against, the other two however..." Ivy shrugged. "I have a preference, but I honestly don't care either way. Either I raise our daughter, with you and her having visits every so often, or you move in with me and we raise our girl together."

An eyebrow quirked. "You do realize I'm the Police Commissioner's daughter? Wouldn't it look odd if I moved in with a wanted fugitive? I mean, I know you said you'd give up your war for your daughter, but you'll still be wanted."

Ivy grinned. "I'm working on that. But don't worry yet, you've still got at least ten months to decide." She stood up from her petal chair, "Now, it's late and we have a long day tomorrow, unless you have more questions?"

Barbara shook her head.

"In that case, I suggest we retire for the evening. Do you need me to show you back to your room?"

The wheelchair-bound woman shook her head. "No, I remember."

"In that case, goodnight, and I'll see you in the morning."

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**Please Review, And Check Out the Challenges in My Forums.**

**Ivy's home is called the Forest, much like the Weasley's call their home the Burrow.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The next morning, Barbara met Ivy a room that was surprisingly devoid of plant life.

The walls were bare, and aside from some shelves and a long desk with various tools and instruments, there was very little in the room. The only other thing was a long padded table with a headrest that had a potion cut out so that someone could lay on their stomach comfortably and a multitude of straps. It was a very cold and impersonal room. It unnerved her after seeing Ivy's various lairs and the other rooms of her house.

The fact that Ivy was wearing scrubs and a lab coat, something completely out of character for the other redhead, made her even more nervous.

Ivy turned and smiled at her, "Ah, good morning Barbara. I trust you slept well?"

"Surprisingly so," Barbara informed the other woman, betraying none of the nervousness she felt. "I wouldn't have expected a giant petal to feel so comfy."

Ivy grinned. "Well I did make them specifically to be beds." Her grin faded somewhat, "Are you ready for me to draw some blood?"

Barbara nodded and rolled herself over to Ivy. "Yeah."

The other woman tied a rubber tourniquet around her upper arm, and gently moved her hands around the inside of Barbara's elbow, looking for a vein. Finding a vein, Ivy sterilized the area with an alcohol swab, before injecting the needle into Barbara's skin. Then she proceeded to fill three vacuum tubes with blood, before pulling out the needle, holding a cotton-ball to the site, and taking off the tourniquet.

Telling Barbara to hold the cotton-ball in place for a few moments, Ivy disposed of the needle and carried the three vials of blood to the desk. Turning back to Barbara she asked, "Would you like to see me pour our blood into the pod now or wait? I don't know that it will help, but it might give you something else to think of besides the pain."

Barbara nodded, "Yeah."

It probably wouldn't work, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

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"_And in a stunning turn of events, the President has officially pardoned the super-villain Pamela Isley, better known to the world as Poison Ivy."_

Bruce flipped off the television, and began to take his tie off.

"Sir?" Alfred asked. "You do realize you were going to a charity picnic?"

Bruce grunted. "Something came up," he said, walking to the grandfather clock, and turning the numbers to open the entrance to the Batcave.

Alfred sighed as he watched the man he had watched grow up enter the Batcave. Despite his best efforts, it seemed that Bruce was becoming Batman more than he was Mr. Wayne. And while the old butler knew that both were mask, he genuinely feared that one day the mask would become the man.

It seemed that all he could do was watch as Bruce allowed his alter-ego to consume him.

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"I can't believe it," Zatanna muttered to herself as she sat in the confines of her room watching the news. "She actually took them up on the offer."

The stage magician was curious. She had friends in the MUSA government, and knew that Ivy had repeatedly turned down their offers of a mundane pardon. But a half-hour ago, one of her contacts had messaged her, telling her to turn on the mundane news.

She wondered what Ivy considered worth finally getting a pardon for?

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The pod reminded Barbara of one of the eggs from the movie _Aliens, _only instead of a four flap design, there was one line running along the top that actually looked a little suggestive.

Barbara wondered if Ivy made that design reference on purpose.

She watched as Ivy put in a few drops of the blood she had collected, before adding a few drops from another vial that Barbara assumed belonged to Ivy herself. Then the pod sealed itself up, leaving no seam.

"Well, that's it," Ivy said. "We'll know in a month whether or not our DNA was successful in combining." She turned to look at Barbara. "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

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Barbara couldn't move.

With help from Ivy, Barbara was now laying on the padded table. The other woman had just finished tightening down all the straps. And Barbara's mouth-guard was firmly in place.

She couldn't move. And she couldn't see what Ivy was doing.

She heard a few things moving around, no doubt Ivy's instrument table.

"I've cut into your back," Ivy said, informing Barbara, who couldn't feel what Ivy was doing past a certain point, exactly what was happening. "I've placed the seeds in. and am applying the growth solution now."

A few moment's later, "_Episkey._...I've healed the incision. Now I'm going to undo the straps and turn you over."

"That wasn't too bad," Barbara said as Ivy took out the mouth-guard.

Ivy didn't smile as she adjusted the table so that Barbara could sit up. "It's not done yet. I'm going to strap you down again, then you're going to drink that," she gestured to a small vial. Of green liquid on her instrument table, "and I'm going to put the mouth-guard back in your mouth. A few moments after that is when the real pain will begin."

Sure enough, as Ivy predicted, after drinking down the vial, Barbara felt something in her back. She wanted to scream, it felt as though white-hot knives were slowly moving under her skin, but the mouth-guard prevented her from doing so.

Seconds seemed to be minutes and minutes seemed to be hours as the pain began to work it's way up her back.

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Ivy kept a grim eye on her patient. She had finally stopped struggling and she imagined that Barbara had finally gone numb.

It had been six hours since she fed the growth solution to the other woman.

Checking her patients vitals again, Ivy confirmed that nothing had gone wrong...

So far.

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Three hours later Barbara began to stir again.

It began with a blinking of eyes, and then a few small struggles against the straps.

Ivy took out the mouth-guard, ready to put it back in if she had to.

"It's over?" Barbara asked, her voice a bit hoarse.

Ivy smiled and nodded. "Yes, it's over."

"So tired."

Ivy quickly began to under the straps. "Then lets get you to bed."

The trip to Barbara's room was short, as Ivy hadn't even tried to put the woman back into her wheel chair. Instead, she had just carried the woman carefully in her arms.

Barbara was asleep before they even left the lab.

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The next morning, Barbara moaned in pleasure as she woke up. Cracking her eyes open, she noticed Ivy sitting at the foot of the the petal bed, massaging her feet. And it felt so damned good that Barbara's eyes began to close again.

But they suddenly snapped open and she sat up.

"Morning," Ivy said, continuing her massage. "Sleep well?"

"You're massaging my feet," Barbara stated bluntly.

Ivy grinned. "Yes I am. Does it feel good?"

Tears began to fall down Barbara's face as she flung her arms around Ivy, hugging her tightly.

"It feels like...like...I can't possibly describe," Barbara said into Ivy's ear.

Ivy smiled as Barbara hugged her, tears of joy running down her face.

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	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

If there was ever someone that knew about the unfairness of life, it was Remus John Lupin.

As a boy, he was bitten by Fenrir Greyback for perceived slight of his fathers. Since then he had been forced, once a month, to change into a bloodthirsty beast. Even when he was old enough to go Hogwarts, he had thought he would never get the chance.

Then Dumbledore admitted him to the school. And for seven years, he was happy. Sure, their had been a few bumps, such as the incident when Sirius sent Severus to him, but for the most part, he had good times. He had four great friends, and was accepted.

But after graduation, everything went downhill.

He found that he was unable to get a job in the wizarding world. And, to proud to accept charity from his friends, he had been forced to look to the muggle world for work, which due to his need to take days a month off, kept him from getting a well paying job.

Until he realized that he was capable of so much more than a muggle private-eye. With his sharp werewolf nose, and his mag, he was able to eek out a living.

Unfortunately, due to his work and the amount of time it took, he was unable to spend much time with his friends, especially as he was trying to build a reputation so that he could attract a wider clientele. The result was that his friends had thought he was the spy in the Order, leading to the events that Halloween fifteen years ago.

The worst part was that he had no real power in the wizarding world. When he found out about Dumbledore planting the suggestion into Lily and James head, he had been furious. He had confronted Dumbledore.

And the Headmaster had calmly pointed out that the DMLE would never take the word of a werewolf over that of the Chief Warlock.

The headmaster had been right, and he had been laughed out of the department when he went to make the complaint. Next he had tried to tell Sirius, but his friend didn't believe him.

He later found out that Sirius also had a suggestion planted in his mind.

Gradually, he had been shunned by his friends, and before long he found himself living completely in the muggle world. He had remained there until Sirius came and informed him of Voldemort's return. It was also then he had learned of Pamela's disappearance.

In the year afterward, on top of doing recon on the other werewolves, he had discreetly been searching for Pamela. Then Dumbledore dropped the news about the prophecy.

Remus knew there was more Albus wasn't saying, he didn't trust the manipulative bastard at all. And he knew that Dumbledore had something in mind for the young girl.

He became even more determined to find her.

And until now, he had proven unsuccessful. However, as he sat in his office, watching the muggle news, he found what he believed to be his first lead.

The news that the President of the U.S.A. had pardoned a known criminal had made international news. And when the mug-shot of Poison Ivy had been shown...

Remus had been shocked at how closely she resembled Lily, too much to be coincidence.

As he purchased his muggle airline ticket, Remus Lupin knew he had to find Pamela before Dumbledore did. He wouldn't allow her to be used as his friends were.

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Selina Kyle, known as Catwoman, sat on her balcony, her cat Isis curled in her lap, as she contemplated the news that Ivy had been pardoned.

She wondered why? But casually brushed her curiosity aside as she looked down at the paper in her hands.

She had bigger, more important things to worry about.

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Harley Quinn couldn't believe what the news said. There was no way Red would go straight. She was positive that Ivy was planing something big.

Perhaps she was even going to need her help.

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"It's legit."

Bruce turned from the Bat-computer to look at Zatanna.

"How did you get in here?" he asked gruffly.

The magician rolled her eyes. "I can use magic, remember?" she asked rhetorically. "But Ivy's pardon is legit, I can guarantee it."

"How?" Batman asked.

Zatanna winced. "That, I can't say. But let's just say that I have a few contacts in high places."

He turned back to his computer. "You'll forgive me if I don't believe you."

"Of course, you wouldn't be you if you weren't super paranoid." She smirked. "In fact I'm positive that's what your superpower is, super-paranoia," she announced in her best show-voice.

When Zatanna got no reaction from the man she said, "I'll just show myself out then."

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James Gordon sat at his desk, his elbows on his desk as he rested his chin on his clasped hands.

It didn't make any sense to him. And as a lawman, especially a lawman in Gotham, anything that didn't make sense made him suspicious.

He had been assured by the Secret Service that no one had gotten near the President that was unusual or new. So by all accounts, Ivy's pardon was genuine.

But what he didn't understand was why he would pardon Ivy.

It didn't make any sense.

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"Well, it seems we need to build up your stamina," Ivy said as she helped Barbara back into her bed.

Barbara smiled as she sat down and snorted, "I think there's a bit more than that."

That was an understatement. All Barbara had managed was to, shakily, stand up, and take two steps, before Ivy caught her as her legs gave out.

The former Batgirl frowned. "I don't understand, I've been doing exercises to keep my legs in shape. I should be able to do this."

Ivy sighed. "Yes, but despite these exercises, you've never actually used your legs since you've been shot. Your muscles aren't used to actually being needed anymore." Her face took on a thoughtful expression. I think we're going to need to do some work in the gym, get your muscles used to actual work, before you try walking again. After about...two weeks, I think, you can try walking again. And, depending on how you do, we'll reassess you then. Sound good?"

Barbara sighed, eager to walk as she was. "I suppose it wouldn't do to go to fast, would it? But isn't there anything magical you could give me that would help?"

"Sadly no," Ivy informed her. "Magicals only really need physical therapy if they lose a limb, to get used to the prosthetic. Very rarely are we bedridden, or incapacitated, that long. Most healing will be over long before there's any muscle degeneration, and the spells that would damage muscle tend to be of the lethal variety."

"Oh," the other woman said disappointed.

Ivy placed her hand under Barbara's chin and lifted her face so that the two could look at each other. "But I will be here beside you the whole time."

Barbara smiled. "Thank you." '_I never realized how beautiful her eyes were'_

Ivy's eyes widened as she heard Barbara's words but the other woman's lips didn't move. "Uh...Barbara, I don't suppose you're a ventriloquist?"

'_What?'_ "No," Barbara said, obviously confused.

Ivy sighed. '_I think there was a side effect to your operation that I failed to foresee.'_

Barbara gasped as she heard Ivy's voice inside her head.

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	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"So?" Barbara asked, as Ivy lowered her wand.

The other woman sighed. "Thankfully, there's no bond between us..."

"Thankfully?" Barbara questioned. "Am I really that horrible?"

Pamela shook her head. "It's not that. But, if we had formed a bond of sorts, there could be other side effects, depending on what type of bond we had," she explained. "As it is, our ability to speak in each others minds is what I suspected it was when we first did it. Your nerves have been replaced with vines, with a type of flora. And since nerves are the transmitters of information, you are able to communicate with me, much as I am able to communicate with other plants."

Barbara's eyes widened. "Does this mean I can communicate with plants as well?"

Shaking her head, Ivy said, "I doubt it. Plants don't really communicate with each other, at least not in the way we think of communication. Then again, I wasn't expecting this, though I probably should have, so who knows." She sighed. "Sadly, this means I have more that I need to teach you, if you plan on staying around me for any length of time anyway."

"What?"

"Occlumency, the art of protecting ones mind." Ivy turned and walked away. "If you don't learn, I will be privy to every thought that crosses your brain." Turning back to grin at Barbara she added, "Such as how firm you think my ass is."

Barbara blushed and, looking away sheepishly, said, "You heard that?"

Ivy nodded. "Yes, and though I can block out your thoughts with my own shields, it would also block my connection with other flora. And sadly, the flora around and inside this building is my alarm and security system. So I need to keep my connection open at the moment."

"And before you ask," Ivy said, stopping Barbara from speaking the question on her mind, "it has to do with my past and the advice I asked you for."

"Oh."

Poison Ivy sighed. "I suppose now is as good a time to explain my past," she said. "I was born sixteen years ago..."

"Wait, you're sixteen?" Barbara asked, shocked.

Ivy glared at her.

"Sorry."

"As I was saying, I was born sixteen years ago. And I suppose, for the first year of my life, I had a normal childhood..."

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"So this Dumbledore guy is looking for you because he believes that you're the only one that can stop Voldemort, Voldemort is looking for you because he thinks you're the only one that can stop him, and according to some magical prophecy you are the only one that can stop him," Barbara summed up after Ivy finished her story.

"Pretty much."

"Wow." Barbara leaned back against her chair. "You're life has been seriously messed up. But I have to ask, why me?"

"What do you mean?" Ivy asked confused.

Barbara sighed. "Why tell me this? Why give me back my legs? Why have a daughter with me?"

An amused look crossed Ivy's face. "You mean that the all-knowing Oracle hasn't figured it out?" she asked.

The other red-head grinned. "Oh, I figured it out, I just want it confirmed." Her face turned serious, "So?"

Rolling her eyes, Ivy said,"Fine, I'm attracted to you. And before you deny any attraction towards me, which I know you're thinking about doing, may I remind you that for the past couple of hours, I've been privy to every thought that's crossed your pretty," she smirked, "and surprisingly dirty, little mind."

Barbara blushed before she frowned. "This is so unfair. Why can't I hear your thoughts?"

Ivy grinned, "I HAVE to send them to you, while you need only to think them."

"So when do we start occlumency training then?"

Ivy stood and, walking out of the room, said, "After brunch. I don't know about you, but I'm hungry."

"Damn it," Barbara muttered under her breath, before turning her wheelchair and following her host out of the room. "This is so embarrassing."

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The two women sat across from each other.

"Now, occlumency is very simple in theory," Ivy explained. "In practice, it's much more difficult. And there are varying levels of occlumency, from simply clearing your mind, all the way to having your own mental mind-scape. Sadly, you must learn the most basic form of occlumency first, and work your way up."

"So what, exactly, am I supposed to do?" Barbara asked.

"This is going to be painful," Ivy said. "I am going to actively attack your mind. Now there are, obviously, steps you need to go through. This first step, you need to clear your mind, and then I will attack. If you can do that, we'll move on to the next level."

"What's the next level?"

"I will attack your mind, then you will attempt to clear your thoughts. Now," Pamela held up her wand and pointed it at Barbara, "Clear your mind." After a few moments, she muttered, "_Legillimens_."

_Barbara was in the middle of a shower when she heard the knock on the door._

"_Just a minute," she yelled._

_Turning off the water, she stepped out of the shower and slipped on her bathrobe._

_More knocking._

_Finally reaching the door, she opened it..._

_Only to come face to face with the Joker, pointing a gun right at her._

_BANG..._

Barbara gasped as Ivy left her mind. It had felt as though she was reliving that night. "What...What was that?" When Ivy didn't respond, Barbara looked up to the other woman had her jaw clenched...

And anger in her eyes.

"Ivy?"

"Nothing," Ivy said, shaking her head. Holding her wand back up, she said, "Again. Clear your mind." A pause. "_Legillimens." _

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Three hours later

"Perhaps we should take a break," Ivy sighed. "You need a break, we can resume this again tomorrow."

"I can do this," Barbara said angrily.

"It's not a matter of can or can't Barbara," Ivy tried to explain. "But you're using up energy and stressing yourself out every time I enter your mind. Just rest, take the rest of the day off, and relax. We'll try again tomorrow. It took me weeks to master what I'm teaching you."

"Alright," Barbara conceded.

"You would probably enjoy the library," Ivy said, as she stood from her seat. "I'll see you at dinner."

"Wait, where are you going?" Barbara asked as Ivy made to leave the room.

"My lab," Ivy said. "I have some...testing to do."

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Two hours later.

Ivy angrily threw her latest pheromone formula across the lab. "So much for first-time miracles," she muttered, looking down at the rats in the pen.

She had planted suggestions in each of their minds to stay on one side of the pen, and her first combination of pheromones had failed to break the suggestion. the Rats continued to remain on the north side of the pen.

Until she was sure she could break the suggestions in her parents minds, she would not return to England.

Back to the drawing board.

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	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

It had been three days since Barbara woke up to discover, not only could she feel and move her legs, but that Ivy could read her mind.

Along with that discovery came several revelations to the young woman.

And while Ivy's past was certainly of note, as was her actual age, in Barbara's mind, the biggest revelation was that Ivy was attracted to her.

Currently, she was sitting with the other woman as they enjoyed dinner. And though she tried to keep her thoughts clear, Barbara couldn't help but think over Ivy's attraction.

The former Batgirl was trying to figure out how she felt about Ivy.

Oh, Ivy was certainly attractive, that was never in doubt. Whether male or female, straight or not, one couldn't help but appreciate Ivy's beauty.

Which was Ivy had been so easily able to tease her about her thoughts.

Hero or not, she was only human and had no control over the thoughts that popped into her head. And Barbara had no problems admitting her bisexuality. Despite only, really, having gone out with men, she was attracted to both men and women. In fact her and Kara, Supergirl (and one of her best friends), had done done some experimenting with each other. And though they never went beyond kissing, it had been enough for the red-head to realize that she was indeed attracted to other women.

Before then, while she had certainly checked out other women, which was actually quite easy when many of her fellow heroine's and super-villainess' either wore very revealing or very tight outfits, she had never acknowledged her attractions. But afterward, she was astounded she hadn't acknowledged it before. And in the privacy of her mind, she admitted to having several fantasies involving both her female allies and foes. Several of which had featured Ivy.

Of course she never expected any of these fantasies to become reality.

She had even been slightly disappointed when, after their little experiment, Kara had admitted that she didn't get the attraction with two women. And that she felt awkward about kissing her friend. Barbara had smiled and joked it off, but she had been slightly disappointed.

Kara was definitely a blond-bombshell, with small town farm-girl and exotic alien thrown in.

But now, with Ivy admitting attraction, Barbara didn't know what to do. On one hand, she was flattered, and slightly hopeful. On the other...

Ivy had been one of her most dangerous and cunning foes. And while the woman may be giving up a life of crime, she hadn't really changed, just allowed her to see a different side of the villianess. And she had no doubt that Ivy was still as dangerous, cunning, and manipulative as ever.

And that manipulative nature was what concerned Barbara most. Ivy was known to be a master at manipulating people, man or woman. So the question on Barbara's mind was if Ivy was being sincere when she admitted her attraction...

...Or was this just another manipulation.

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Ivy sighed and stood up from the table.

"I'm going into the city for a bit," she informed the other woman. "Is there anything you'd like?"

Barbara looked up in surprise, before blushing and looking down at her food, no doubt realizing that Ivy could still here her thoughts. And though her attempts to clear her mind helped, she still wasn't proficient enough to block everything out. "No, I'm alright," she informed her.

Ivy almost smiled, and probably would have if she wasn't thinking about Barbara's thoughts, at the fact that Barbara was lying. Ivy had clearly picked up the desire for a laptop from the other woman before she re-cleared her mind. "In that case, as usual, feel free to explore the house. You already know which areas to avoid."

And without any further talk, Ivy left the dining room. Wanting to blend in, she made her way up to her bedroom. Once there, she allowed the leafs she used to cover herself to retract back into her body. Walking over to her vanity, she opened a drawer and pulled out her wand. Looking up into the mirror, she glanced at her body.

Green was the predominant color, followed by red.

Her body possessed no other colors, even the whites of her eyes where pale green. It was mostly green, with her hair, aureola, and..inside, being a bright red. With a sigh, she began to cast glamours on herself, turning her skin tan, hair black, and eyes dark blue. When she was done, she was barely recognizable as Ivy, only her facial features and body structure would give her away. Luckily, very few would look past her skin and hair colors in an attempt to see Ivy.

In fact, she couldn't think of anyone that would, except perhaps Batman. And hopefully he would be preoccupied with the other criminals of Gotham to bother with her.

There were days she didn't know if being Ivy was a blessing or a curse.

This was quickly turning into one.

Turning to her closet, she looked for something that would allow her to blend in with the crowd.

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"It's a simple question," Selina pointed out. "Will you give up Batman for me?"

"You already know the answer Selina," Bruce said from his spot looking down onto the streets of Gotham.

Selina sighed, and was glad that Bruce was turned away from her, keeping him from seeing the heartbreak in her eyes. "I need to hear you say it," she admitted, silently hoping she was wrong.

She wasn't.

"No," Bruce said, still not looking at her.

"Not even if I gave up Catwoman?"

Bruce turned and looked at her, his lower face, as always, was unreadable. "Gotham needs Batman," he informed her.

"So be it," she sighed. Turning away and walking to the edge of the roof, she said, "Goodbye Bruce." Taking one last look at the man she loved over her shoulder, she added, "This is Catwoman's last night. Once I take the outfit off, I won't be putting it back on."

And without further words, she pulled out her whip, and with a flick of her wrist, ensnared the whip around a fire escape and jumped off.

It was only when she was several blocks away, that Catwoman allowed her tears to fall. "I'm sorry Bruce," she said to herself, "But I have to do what I feel is best...," she allowed her hand to caress her stomach, "...for all of us."

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Remus kicked an old trash can angrily.

Another lead that proved to be a dud.

Since arriving in Gotham, he had checked out all previously known hideouts of Poison Ivy. As expected, he hadn't found anything. Afterward, he had begun to make inquires in the...seedy side of Gotham, not expecting the police to know anything. And while he had heard several rumors of Ivy's whereabouts, none had panned out.

He was getting frustrated.

Sighing as he allowed himself to calm down, the werewolf decided that if he hadn't found anything in the next two days, he'd venture into the MUSA.

He just hoped Dumbledore didn't have any American contacts, as that was why he had avoided the option so far.

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After a brief stop in Shadow Lane, Gotham's magical district, to pick up a laptop for Barbara, Ivy decided she needed advice on how to convince Barbara that she was indeed sincere.

Sadly, that meant going to Selina. Catwoman was a thief, and a damn good one, but she had still managed to involve herself romantically with Batman. There literally wasn't anyone else she could ask.

So, making her way towards the penthouse apartment she knew Selina kept, Ivy tried to decide how to broach the subject without giving to much away.

She may want Selina's advice, but she was still Batman's lover. And unlike Barbara, she had nothing to hold over Selina for her silence. At least nothing she would use.

Ivy may be a villain, but she did have a code of honor. She would never rat on her fellows, especially ones she was on, relatively at least, good terms with.

Pressing the intercom, Ivy waited for Selina's response, and hoped she wasn't out.

"_Hello?_" Selina's voice asked through the intercom.

"Selina, it's Ivy," she informed the other woman. "I need to speak with you."

"_Not interested."_

Ivy sighed. "Please, I need your help." when there was no response she added, "It's a personal problem and doesn't involve breaking any laws."

When there was still no response, Ivy sighed and was just about to turn away, when she heard the lobby door click open, and Selina say, "_Fine."_

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	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Opening her apartment door, Selina raised an eyebrow at Ivy's appearance. She had never realized the other woman was so skilled at changing her appearance. If it weren't for the fact that she recognized Ivy's features under the make-up (though she had to do a double take when she looked through the peep-hole to do so) and her unnaturally green eyes, she never would have realized just whom was at her door.

"And I thought you didn't tan," she said, a little sarcastically.

Selina really didn't know what possessed her to let the other woman in. She knew, more than most, just how dangerous Ivy was. But she also knew that Ivy was a proud woman.

It wasn't like her to ask for help.

Ivy rolled her eyes as she stepped into the apartment. "Yes, since I'm pardoned I can now walk downtown Gotham without a certain someone interrogating, and possible pushing me enough that I need to arrange a new pardon," she replied with equal sarcasm.

Selina smiled, somewhat sadly. Bruce would definitely do that if he saw her. "So, what does the great Poison Ivy need my help with?" she asked.

The thief noticed Ivy hesitate for a minute. And when the other woman spoke, her voice was serious, with no hint of sarcasm or malice. "How did you convince Batman you loved him? That you weren't just using him?"

Selina was surprised at Ivy's question, but her eyes narrowed, her conversation with Bruce earlier in the night still fresh in her mind. "Why are you interested?" she asked, perhaps a little coldly.

Green eyes looked over to her. "Is it safe to assume you know the identities of Batman and his associates?"

Selina nodded. "Are you saying you've fallen in love with on of his associates?"

"Oracle."

Selina sat down in one of her chairs and leaned back in her seat. She knew of Ivy's preference for women, it was a relatively well known fact about the other woman. It didn't surprise her that of all the Bat-Family, it would be Barbara that caught her eye. But she had better make sure this wasn't a trick.

Despite her and Barbara's general distrust of one-another, she did respect the re-head. Especially since she refused to let her paralysis keep her from fighting crime, even if it wasn't directly.

"What's her identity?" Selina asked, if she got confirmation of it, she'd hear Ivy out. If not, she'd assume it was a trick.

Ivy hesitated a moment, before replying, "Barbara Gordon."

Selina sighed, "What exactly is the problem?"

Ivy snorted. "The problem is that, despite the fact that I've promised to give up crime, despite the fact that I've given her back her legs, despite the fact that we're having a child together, she still doesn't trust that my feelings for her are genuine."

The thief's eyes widened and she held up her hands. "Whoa, back up. You're having a child together? How is that even possible?"

"It's complicated," Ivy said. "But yes, we are having a child, a girl, in about ten months. As for how, I developed a way, leave it at that." She sent a slight glare at Selina, "Now can you please answer my original questions. How did you convince Batman you loved him? That you weren't using him?"

Selina sighed. Her hand drifting unconsciously to her belly. "I'm not sure I ever did," she admitted sadly.

Ivy's eyes widened as she noticed the movement. "Bruce's?"

"Of course," Selina said, a sad smile on her face. She looked down. "I told him earlier that I was giving up Catwoman, and I asked if he would give up Batman."

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When Selina looked back up, Ivy could see the tears in the other woman's eyes. "He said no," she finished sadly. "I refuse to raise my child with the possibility, every night, that I'll have to tell her that her father won't be coming home. To risk that one of his enemies discovers his identity and comes after our child when neither of us may be around to protect it. In fact, I'm making arrangements to leave Gotham. This city is just to dangerous to raise a child in."

"I'm sorry," she told the, now former, thief sincerely.

Selina shook her head. "It's not you're fault. Anyway, that's not what you need to hear." She paused for a moment before saying, "If you want Barbara to trust your feelings for her, you need to show her you can be trusted, every day. Don't give her reason not to trust you. Eventually, hopefully, she will realize that you are truthful. I'm afraid that that's all you can do I'm afraid."

Ivy sighed. "Thank you, I suppose." She held out her palm, allowing a flower to grow, much like she had when she first visited Barbara in her tower. "I know we've never been best friends," she said, plucking the flower from her hand with a slight wince. Handing Selina the flower she continued, "But if you ever need help, or even just want to talk, don't be afraid to use this. Speak into it, and I'll hear you." She then gave Selina the instructions to keep the flower alive.

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Remus was walking back to his hotel when his sensitive nose picked up a familiar scent.

It smelled like the earthy scent that he had memorized the day he first held Pamela, though it was mixed with rose, jasmine, and cedar, the underling scent was that same earthy one.

It wasn't until he rounded a corner, and bumped into someone that he found the scent.

"Excuse me," a raven-haired woman said softly.

Remus was about to waive of her apology, when he saw her face. And saw the unmistakable lines of Lily Potter in her face.

"Pamela?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," she said, "you must have me mistaken for someone else."

But even as she said it, he knew it was a lie as the scent of poison began to permeate the air.

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When the man she bumped into said her name, Ivy immediately infused her lips with venom, just in case he really had recognized her and was an enemy.

She knew she had made enemies that wouldn't be deterred by her pardon in her time as Poison Ivy. It was what the man said next, however that shocked her.

"Pamela Potter."

Looking up, her green eyes met amber and the man grinned in triumph that Ivy knew either Dumbledore or Voldemort had found her. Acting on pure instinct, she used the only weapon she had available at the moment...

...and pulled the man's lips to her own in a poisonous kiss.

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	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Barbara was getting worried.

She sighed, this wasn't like her. She didn't worry after just a few hours when her dad had to go into town for something not work related, yet she was feeling that way about Ivy.

Perhaps it was guilt. She was sure her thoughts where what drove Ivy away, out of her own house.

Though to be fair, she wasn't use to controlling what she thought. But her doubts about how genuine Ivy's feeling for her where, was no doubt heard by Ivy. And while Ivy was a villain, or had been, since coming to the manor, the other woman had given Barbara no reason not to trust her.

The woman known as Oracle just wished that Ivy would understand and forgive her.

Perhaps she should think about giving Ivy a chance, they were having a child together after-all.

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Remus groaned as he came to, finding himself...well he didn't know where. He was surrounded by various plants, many of which he didn't recognize, including the plant the currently had it's vines wrapped around him to keep from moving.

"You're lucky," the feminine voice of the woman he bumped into said from somewhere, he couldn't see her at all. "If I didn't feel the need to question you, I would have used a lethal poison rather than one that would render you unconscious."

In front of him, the woman stepped into the light, without her disguise. Her hair was a vibrant true red, with her skin a pale green. And no one could argue that she was not Poison Ivy as one gazed upon her full, seductive figure, covered only by a leafy garment that covered her like a strapless, one-piece swimsuit. As she walked around him, Remus also notice that the back on whatever she was wearing was extremely low.

"Fail to answer my questions, and your death will be slow and painful," she continued. She paused and looked down at him, and Remus knew that she was indeed Pamela Potter. The anger in her eyes had only ever been matched by Lily. And even with the green skin and redder hair, there was no mistaking the resemblance between her and Lily, especially now.

"Who sent you, Dumbledore or Voldermort?" she demanded.

"Neither," he answered. "I came here, to find you, of my own accord."

"Why?"

He looked up to meet her eye. "Because I refuse to let you fall under Dumbledore's thumb like your parents."

To his surprise, the woman snorted. "If your here to warn me about Dumbledore, you're years too late," she said, almost laughing. "I've haven't had any intention of associating with Dumbledore since I was old enough to realize my parents favored Jason over me. Since you came here to warn me, what's your name?"

"Remus Lupin, you may also know me as Moony."

Ivy's eyes narrowed. "You were one of the Marauders, one of my father's friends."

He nodded in confirmation. "Yes."

"So how do I know I can trust you? I mean, my parents are firmly on Dumbledore's side."

"Not by choice," he told her. "There is a suggestion planted in their minds, Sirius Black also has one. It was planted by..."

"Dumbledore, I know," Ivy finished, surprising the werewolf. She gave him an accessing look. "Though I'll admit, I had no idea Sirius also had a suggestion planted in his mind. But how do I know you don't have one? That this isn't some trick to gain my trust."

Remus sighed. "Because I'm a werewolf," he explained. "The mental arts don't work on me, my mind is both animal and man, rending it unable to be manipulated by magic. And I already tried to get the Dumbledore arrested for tampering with your parents minds, I was laughed out of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement when I made the complaint."

She gave him an assessing look. "You truly mean me no harm?"

He shook his head. "No. I only want to help you."

The woman walked forward until she stood in front of him. "Then go home and forget you ever saw me," she instructed. And before he could say anything, she kissed him once more.

And he slipped into unconsciousness.

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When Remus woke up, he was laying in a comfortable bed, in a muggle hotel.

One that was a lot nicer than the motel he had been staying in.

As he climbed out bed, he noticed that breakfast had apparently been set out. And in the middle of the platter was a piece of paper folded so that it would stand up. And written on it, in an elegant, feminine hand were the words, '_Go Home.'_

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Pamela was tired as she walked into gas station. Between training Barbara in occlumency, her talk with Selina, and interrogating and moving Remus around, she was exhausted, emotionally at least. Her unique body chemistry made it almost impossible for her to actually physically tire.

So she ignored the looks of fear she got as she entered the building and walked to the back.

Grabbing a large bottle of water, she made her way back up to the counter, where the cashier was holding his hands up.

"Please don't hurt me?" he begged.

"What are you blabbering about?" she said, pulling out money out of her pocket to pay for her water.

The man looked at her wide-eyed. "You're...you're not going to rob me? He asked astonished.

She rolled her eyes, "What possibly gave you that idea?"

"It's just...you're Poison Ivy."

Pamela's eyes widened slightly and she looked down at her arm. Damn, it was green. While she had remembered to change back into her normal clothing after interrogating Remus, she apparently had forgotten to re-apply her glamours. Which meant not only had she checked Remus into the hotel looking like Ivy, but she had walked to the gas station as well.

Which meant...

The cashier's eyes widened even more as he looked at her, or more specifically, past her.

"Ivy," a deep voice said from behind her.

The red-head sighed, and set a ten-dollar bill on the counter. "Keep the change," she instructed the cashier.

Turning around, and opening her bottle of water, she came face to face with the Dark Knight himself. Remembering her conversation with Selina, her eye's narrowed as she said, "Hello Batman." After taking a sip of water she continued. "Perhaps we should take this conversation outside."

Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked out the door.

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"Now, what do you want?" Ivy asked, as Batman came over the edge of the roof.

"Without hesitation, he asked, "What are you up to Ivy?"

She scoffed. "Did it ever occur to you that I'm not up to anything?"

"Just because your pardoned, doesn't mean you changed," he accused. "You're still the same woman that's killed, robbed, and terrorized Gotham."

The red-head rolled her eyes. "I never claimed I wasn't," she confirmed. "But that doesn't mean that my situation hasn't changed."

"What are you talking about?"

"Things have recently happened in my life that have caused me to re-prioritize my life," Ivy explained, keeping her eyes on the masked vigilante. "As such, I can no longer continue my war in good conscience."

"What things?" he asked.

Her eyes hardened. "Things that are not your business.

Batman opened his mouth to respond but stopped for a moment. And his hand moved up to his mask, more specifically his ear. "Are you sure?" he asked, obviously not talking to her.

"I'll be there in a moment," he said after a pause. He looked back at Ivy.

"Don't let me stop you?" Ivy said, pleased that he was leaving.

"Ivy...," he paused for a moment, turning to the side of the building. "...I'll be watching."

And without hesitation, he jumped off the roof.

Ivy sighed for a moment. "I need a relaxing soak," she said, and disappeared via apparation to her manor.

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"This is your fault," Joker snarled as he kicked Harley again. "You set the alarm off before we were ready!"

"I'm sorry puddin'," Harley whimpered weakly, "it won't happen again." The blond was already badly beaten, he lip was swollen, and bloody, as was one of her eyes. She was also sure that at least three of her ribs were broken.

"You're right," Joker said, grinning. "It won't."

Without warning he raised up his gun and shot her. He then kicked his stunned lover in the head, pushing her into blissful unconsciousness,.

Just as Batman crashed through the skylight.

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Appearing in her entryway, Ivy was surprised.

Barbara had apparently tried to stay up and wait for her. And while the other woman may normally be used to staying up late due to her duties as Oracle, and before that Batgirl, occlumency training was exhausting, added on top of her physical therapy, and she was unable to stay awake.

Walking quietly to the other woman, so as not to wake her, Ivy caught a brief glimpse of her dream and smiled. Unlike her thoughts, dreaming was something that Ivy could only catch glimpses of from the the other woman.

Seeing the two of them cuddled together on some beach watching a smaller re-headed girl, about seven or eight, play in the waves, even if it was only a glimpses, in Barbara's mind gave Ivy hope that perhaps she could work past Barbara's distrust of her.

Carefully, she removed Barbara from her chair. The other re-head cuddled closer to her, "Ivy..," she whispered sleepily, a small smile on her face.

Ivy smiled as she began to make her way to Barbara's bedroom. Once there, she gently set the other woman down on the petal-bed. Afterward, she pulled out her wand and transfigured Barbara's clothes into soft pajamas. Afterward, she pulled a small package from her pocket and used her wand to unshrink it after she placed it on the bedside table.

It was the laptop she had purchased for Barbara in Shadow Alley.

Before she left, she placed a light kiss on Barbara's forehead, "Dream peacefully," she whispered.

Quietly closing the door, Pamela left to her own room...

Never seeing the small smile on the sleeping woman's face.

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**Hope you enjoyed. Please Review and Check Out the Challenges in My Forums. Also take a look at my stories up for adoption posted under _Please Adopt Me!_**

**And for those of you wondering why Remus isn't dead, the idea is that Ivy can decide what poison to imbue her lips with, she used one powerful enough to knock a person out, but not powerful enough to kill.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Barbara was surprised when she opened her eyes.

She certainly didn't remember coming to bed last night. In fact she had been sitting in the entryway, reading a book as she waited for Ivy to return. And she certainly didn't remember changing into pajamas.

She felt her face heat up, and knew she was blushing as she thought about Ivy changing her clothes.

But what drew her attention and surprised her the most was the package on the table (if the plant could be called that) beside her bed. Looking at it, she noticed it was a laptop, and she realized that Ivy must have bought it for her.

A twinge of guilt lanced through her. She'd driven Ivy from her home, and the other woman still brought her something.

Reaching over to pick up the laptop, she was surprised to find that it was one of the latest models. It was a high quality computer, and while not as good as her Delphi system, it was probably one of the best that could be bought and used out of the box.

The redhead glanced over at her wheelchair.

It annoyed her that she was still dependent on it. She had her legs back, but couldn't walk further than a few steps without assistance. To be so close, and yet so far from her hope galled her. She knew that she would eventually regain full use of her legs, but until then she was, for the moment at least, still reliant on her wheelchair.

Shakily, she stood from the petal-bed, using it for support as she took the few steps to the chair.

She sighed as she sat down, frustrated that such a short walk was enough to exhaust her. Grabbing the laptop, she set in her lap and then rolled out of the room, determined to find Ivy and thank her for the gift, and hopefully apologize for last night.

It took her few minutes, but she found Ivy in the sitting room.

She smiled as she looked at the other woman.

Ivy was asleep in one of her petal chairs, dressed in the blue dress-suit she had left the manor in last night. Her matching blue heels had been lazily kicked off. A book lay open on her lap, and it was obvious the woman had fallen asleep reading.

As quietly as she could, she set her laptop down on the floor, and rolled over to pick the book off of Ivy's lap. Setting it on a nearby table, she carefully plucked a leaf from a nearby plant to mark the page, hoping Ivy wouldn't be upset.

Picking her new computer up off the floor, she rolled into the dining room, so that she could open the box and set it up without disturbing Ivy.

She also needed to use Ivy's phone. She hadn't called her father yet, due to the occlumency training and physical therapy.

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James Gordon sighed as he looked over the report of the Joker's bank robbery last night.

He didn't know whether to feel glad that no innocents were hurt, or upset that Joker had hurt someone.

Granted Harleen Quinzel had done a lot of damage to others herself, but still.

And now, according to his last report from the hospital, she was in critical condition. The only reason he even had officers posted was for the woman's safety, as she was in a medically induced coma to give her body a chance to heal.

He was just glad that, thus far, the information hadn't been leaked to the press. As far as they were concerned, Batman had stopped the Joker from robbing Gotham National Bank, and both he and Harleen were in custody. He knew the story would leak eventually, and when it did the vultures would descend, but until then, he could focus on doing his job instead of dealing reporters more concerned with a story than someone's life.

The commissioner was pulled from his thoughts as his phone rang.

Not even waiting for the second ring, he picked it up, answering, "Gordon."

_"Hey Dad," _the voice of his daughter greeted, bringing a smile to his face.

"Barbara, how was your trip?" he asked.

_"Quick,"_ she responded. _"I was just calling to tell you that I'm fine, and I'm sorry for not calling earlier, but a lots been happening._"

"Oh?" he asked, frowning. "Did you have the procedure done already?"

When she answered, he could hear the smile in his daughter's voice. "_Yes. Dad…it worked. I can feel my legs, move them again."_

Jim smiled, and felt tears of joy roll down his cheeks. "That's great news honey."

_"Yeah, but frustrating."_

"Physical therapy?" he asked, still smiling.

_"I still need the wheelchair outside of therapy,"_ she sighed in admittance. _"I can only take a few steps without help before collapsing." _

"It'll take time sweetheart," he assured her. "How're the doctors? They treating you well?"

There was silence for a moment, before Barbara replied, "_My doctor's fine. She'd doing her best to make me comfortable, make me feel at home."_

"That's good," he assured her. "Any idea how long therapy will take?"

_"It depends on my progress. I'm hoping it won't be long, you know how determined and stubborn I am."_

He chuckled. "Yes I do." He sighed before admitting, "I'm afraid I gotta go, things are kind of hectic around here right now."

_"What happened?" _she asked, worried.

"Gotham," he answered without humor. "I can't say much, but Joker tried robbing a bank last night."

_"I'll let you go then. I love you Dad."_

"I love you too sweetie."

Hanging up the phone, Gordon couldn't help but smile.

The night might have been hectic, and today might be a headache, but something was looking up.

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Remus sat in his hotel room, having returned to the room he'd rented when he first arrived in Gotham. The werewolf was currently trying to decide what to do.

He'd done what he came to do, but he'd honestly been hoping to spend some time with Pamela. Of course, he really couldn't blame her for her reaction to him, or wanting him to go home.

There was nothing left to do in Gotham.

And it was really only luck that he'd found Pamela in the first place.

Standing from the bed, he went around gathering the few things he'd unpacked. It was time to go home.

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Ivy opened her eyes and groaned, after a moment to gain her bearings, she sat up and stretched, her back popping in the process.

Did she really fall asleep down here?

Shaking her head, Ivy looked around for her book, and was surprised to find it sitting on a side table, a leaf making one of the pages. Standing up, she idly stripped out of the suit, as leaves grew out of her body to cover her.

She was about to step out of the room, to take her clothes back up to her room, but she paused, as a wicked idea popped into her head.

Ivy knew Barbara likely wouldn't appreciate her humor, but her reaction would be worthwhile, as would her thoughts. Carefully, she pulled leaves back into her body, leaving her flawless skin bare to see, until her only coverings were two leaves that acted like pasties over her breast, and a line of leaves that strangely resembled a pair of small panties around her hips.

She handed her clothes to the vines covering her walls, instructing them to carry the clothes up to her hamper.

As she walked down the hall, towards Barbara's room, she noticed a typing sound coming from the dining room.

Smirking as she realized the other red-head was up, and had apparently found her gift, the green-skinned women made her way to the dining room. Her smirk widened as she noticed Barbara hadn't noticed her entrance, and was focused on her computer.

Though Ivy, not knowing anything about computers beyond the basics, didn't understand the technobabble drifting to her from Barbara's mind, she was still fascinated by what the woman was doing. The best she could figure, Barbara was adding her own programing to the thing.

"Having fun?" she asked, using her most seductive voice, from the doorway.

"I…," Barbara stopped speaking as she looked up from her screen to see Ivy.

It made the, now ex, villainess pleased when all the technobabble ceased coming over the link. In fact, it seemed that Barbara's mind was finally well, and truly clear of all thoughts beyond what was seeing.

Smiling, Ivy walked towards the other woman, adding a little extra sway to her hips as she did so. Barbara's eyes followed her every movement. Walking to stand behind her guest, Ivy reached down and began massaging Barbara's shoulders. Leaning down, she whispered into her ear, "Enjoying your gift?"

"I…Yes," Barbara said, a slight moaning quality to her voice.

Images began drifting from Barb's mind, of Ivy pushing her up onto her the table and having her way with her. Deciding that Barb had…suffered, enough, Barbara stopped, and moved to sit down in the chair to the right of Barbara, replacing the leaves on her body until she was once more in her regular outfit as she did so.

It took Barbara a moment to come out of the lustful haze Ivy had put her in, and she glared at the grinning Ivy, who was examining her nails.

Without waiting for Barbara to come up with a question, Ivy told her, "You can't say you didn't enjoy it. I can read your mind, remember."

Barbara's eyes narrowed, and she said, "You are evil."

Grinning, Ivy reminded the former Batgirl, "Well I AM Poison Ivy." Sobering her face back into a normal, though smiling, expression, she asked, "In all seriousness however, are you happy with the laptop? The salesman was of the opinion it was a good model."

Barbara's expression softened, slightly. "It's good. Not as good as the Delphi system, but good….Thanks."

"Good. When you're done…doing whatever it is you're doing, we'll do your physical therapy. Afterward, if you're not too tired, we'll do more occlumency. This sound all right?" Ivy asked.

Barbara blushed, and Ivy suddenly knew that she was embarrassed about her thoughts the previous night. "I'm sorry," Barbara said softly. "About last night."

Ivy sighed. "It's fine, I needed advice, and I got it." She smiled. "I had an encounter with BM last night."

Barbara snorted. "BM?"

Grinning, Ivy asked, "Don't like it? Those are his initials."

Barbara apparently couldn't help it, she burst out laughing. "I don't think even Superman would be brave enough to tell him that."

Smiling, Ivy stood back up. "When you're done, I'll be in my lab. I've got some more work to do."

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**Please Review and Checkout the Challenges in My Forums and the stories I have up for adoption, posted under the title ****_Please Adopt Me!_**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Albus Dumbledore frowned as he put down the book.

It was a summoning spell that didn't require a name, personal item, or piece of the person you wanted to find. And he could see why it had fallen out of favor.

Done properly, it took almost a full year to prepare.

He wasn't prepared to wait that long to find the missing Potter.

He was pulled from his thoughts as Dedalus Diggle entered his office, what appeared to be newspaper in his hands. "Albus…I think I have a lead on Pamela Potter."

Albus perked up immediately, his full attention on the other wizard.

"You know how I read the muggle papers when I visit the Leaky Cauldron," Dedalus explained. "Well I was reading one and," he put the paper on Albus' desk, showing a picture of a redheaded woman with green skin, "is it me, or does that woman look like a younger Lily Potter?"

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Peter Pettigrew was many things. A coward. A traitor. A weakling. A suck-up. But one thing he was not, was an idiot.

One didn't fool their friends, spy on the Order of the Phoenix for several years, fake their own death, remain in hiding for thirteen years, or find and resurrect the Dark Lord without some intelligence after-all. It was why he had joined the Deatheaters in the first place. At the time, they had been winning the war, and in fact they probably would have if not for whatever freak accident occurred that Halloween so many years ago.

He had no desire to be on the losing side.

And while he had been useful in the last war, and had aided Voldemort's return, now he was nothing more than a servant. He knew why this was of course. He really had no talent in magic and, with his death revealed as fake, he was of no use as a spy, even in his rat form.

That was something he hoped to change. But he knew he would need to prove himself.

Thus, he was looking through numerous muggle newspapers. Unlike many of his fellow Deatheaters, Peter understood something very important about the muggle world.

They saw things they shouldn't, and contrary to popular belief, obliviators didn't find every muggle that witnessed magic. And, since he really had nothing else he could do, he was reduced to hunting through muggle papers and tabloids for anything of value. And while he hadn't yet found anything, he'd been hunting them for months, in between the various other duties he had to do if he didn't want to be crucio'd.

He was fortunate however that the pardoning of a criminal as notorious as Poison Ivy was international news.

Looking at her picture in the paper, he saw a woman that greatly resembled Lily.

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"So you believe that you have found Pamela Potter?" Voldemort questioned skeptically.

"Y…yes," Wormtail stuttered.

"Where?"

"America, my Lord," Wormtail informed him. "If…If I may?"

Voldemort gestured for Wormtail to continue. The fat, balding, rat-like man pulled out a muggle newspaper, a picture of a green-skinned, redheaded woman on the front. "She resembles Lily Potter," he said, handing the paper to him.

Voldemort took the paper and studied the picture. The woman did indeed Lily Potter and he could make out features of her husband as well. The fact that the woman shared the first name of his prey only added to the possibility that it was her. Reading the article accompanying the picture, he became intrigued.

This woman was apparently deadly, and possessed a mastery and knowledge of plants that was unheard of.

Leaning back in his chair, he looked over at Yaxley, who had been giving his own report when Wormtail requested an audience. "Yaxley," he called.

The ministry employee immediately approached the throne and bowed. "My Lord?" he questioned.

"Use your contacts, find out what you can about the woman known as Poison Ivy," he instructed.

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Barbara swore as her legs gave out below her once more. Only the two railings on either side of her kept her from falling to the floor. Ivy also helped, gently holding her up long enough to sit back in her wheelchair

Ivy sighed and glared at the other woman, "I told you, not to push yourself. You were supposed to tell me when you were getting tired."

"I thought I could push through it," Barbara admitted. "I want to push through it."

"And hurt yourself in the process?" Ivy asked incredulously.

Barbara sighed, "I'm sorry."

Ivy took a breath. "No occlumency tonight." Immediately, as Barbara began to protest, Ivy held up her hand. "You're the one that wanted to push yourself. Granted, I could have stopped you when I realized you were tired. But just because I can hear your thoughts, doesn't mean I'll act on them. I'm not here to hold your hand, and as much as I'd like to be, I'm not even here for you."

Barbara gave Ivy a wide-eyed look. "I thought…"

"What, that just because I like you, that I'm attracted to you, I'm going to help you?" Ivy asked. She sighed. "I will admit, I wouldn't do so much for someone I didn't like. But there comes a point I have to draw a line Barbara. What good will it do you if you come to rely on my ability to read your mind? What good will it do you if I coddle you? I want to help you, but we're to the point that you must ask for that help. Just because you think it, doesn't mean you give me permission to act on those thoughts. In fact, I'm willing to bet you'd get angry if I did that. If I acted on your thoughts, we'd have fucked like bunnies, and you would have called it rape. Not because you didn't think about it, but because you would have never given me consent."

The redheaded woman looked away from Barbara. "I have done, my best, to help you. I will continue to do so, but I CANNOT help you unless you allow me to do so."

The two woman stayed in silence for several moments, before Ivy spoke again. "I'll be in my lab," she said, not once looking at the other woman, before stepping from the room.

Leaving Barbara to stew in her own guilt.

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Ivy sighed in frustration as she sat back in her chair. Another formula, another failure.

What had started out as such a good day, had quickly turned sour.

Barbara was stubborn. And while she could have stopped her from exhausting herself, in fact she would have if genuine harm could have been done, she knew that if she did, Barbara would yell and scream at her. Especially as she was so determined to be rid of that damn wheelchair.

It was so frustrating.

She hadn't planned on being able to read Barbara's mind, though she admitted that she should have. That alone was torture. She, more than anyone, knew that one did not always want or do what they thought. Seeing the images Barbara conjured, hearing the words she dare not speak, pushed her. The good things tempted her, oh did they tempt her. This morning it had been remarkably hard for her to act nonchalant about her flirting, especially with what Barbara was imagining running through her head.

But then there were the thoughts of distrust, of anger, directed at Ivy. At times, they made Ivy want to scream.

Not to mention her own stress derived from knowing she was being hunted, and still not having gotten closer to breaking the suggestion in her family's minds.

She looked over at the pod that housed her and Barbara's child. She was finding it hard to follow Selina's advice, to wait for Barbara to trust her. It would be easy, oh so very easy, to make Barbara love her, to flood the other woman's mind with pheromones of love and lust. Given enough time, and enough exposure, the effects would become permanent without an antidote.

But she didn't want that. She wanted a willing partner, a willing love, a willing mother to their daughter.

Perhaps, she needed to swallow her pride.

She looked over at the phone she had in her lab. She'd told Barbara the truth when she mentioned that she didn't know anyway to speed up her muscle regeneration. But that didn't mean there was a way.

Especially since the one woman she'd consider asking for help didn't use regular magic.

The problem was, neither of them could stand the other.

Swallowing her pride, Ivy picked up the phone and dialed the number she knew the other woman would be surprised to hear she had.

"_Hello," _the voice on the other end answered.

Ivy hung the phone up. No, she didn't Ms. Righteous and Superiors help. Not yet anyway.

Checking the clock, she noticed it had been a few hours since she left Barbara. Standing up, and casting a brief glare at her test rats, she decided to go check on the other woman.

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Zatanna looked down at the phone's caller ID. Reaffirming that she didn't recognize the number.

Shrugging, she mumbled to herself, "Must have been the wrong number."

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Barbara sighed as she restarted her laptop.

She finally finished all the improvements she could to the thing without other parts or machines. As the startup screen came up and she entered her password, her thoughts drifted, once more, to what Ivy had told her.

She knew the other woman was right, that it was wrong to expect Ivy to act on what was in her mind. That she would get angry if, as much as the woman teased her, Ivy actually acted on those thoughts.

Selecting the internet on her desktop, Barbara opened two windows. One was so that she could check her email the other to check the news. Out of habit, she also opened the program, which she had designed, to hack the Gotham PD's database.

When she saw the news, she was glad she did.

The Headline read: **_Harley Quinn Hospitalized_**

"What happened?" Ivy's cold voice asked from the entryway.

Looking up, Barbara knew that Ivy had picked up the news from her mind.

And that she had never seen Ivy look so frightening.

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**Please Review and Checkout the Challenges in My Forums and the stories I have up for adoption, posted under the title ****_Please Adopt Me!_**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Say what you wanted about Harvey "Two-Face" Dent, there was one thing both sides of his personality were in complete agreement on.

Family first.

Which was why, after his informants discovered it, Harvey was intrigued when he heard that Barbara Gordon was getting her legs back. He, like most of Gotham, knew what had happened to the girl, due to the fact there had been a lot of news coverage, her being the Commissioner's daughter and all.

This intrigued him, because Harvey had one sibling, a younger sister named Linda. Her daughter, his niece, had been in a serious accident at her school, causing her to be paralyzed from the waist down.

The problem was, despite hearing this news about Barbara, he had no idea if it was true or not. And he'd certainly never heard of any new procedures capable of giving someone their legs back. So he needed to investigate. Again, he had no idea where Barbara lived, which was the logical place to start. Ever since Joker shot her, Barbara and the Commissioner had done a good job keeping her residence secret.

Which was why it had taken him several days to find the place.

And really, it was ingenious, though the security system of the clock tower had been unbelievable. And it was really luck that he stumbled upon the secret entrance to…well whatever she called this room, he was calling it her lair.

He'd gotten frustrated with not finding anything in the apartment, and picked up a book to throw, only the book didn't move off the shelf, and opened the entrance.

The first thing he noticed was the massive computer system, which suggested that Jim's little angel wasn't such an angel. Then he found the batgirl costume, behind a glass case, which made him suspect that the female Gordon had, after her accident, become the fabled Oracle.

But it wasn't until he found a potted plant in a far corner that he got his first real lead.

Harvey may not have been a botanist, but he knew Ivy's work when saw it. The flower's distance and hidden location, combined with its unique appearance suggested nothing else.

Shame it was dead.

Ivy had gone to ground since her pardon, and he really couldn't blame her. He knew Batman well enough to know he'd hound the woman if he saw her. But…

Harley Quinn had been shot. Most criminals knew just how protective Ivy was of the blonde, and Harvey was willing to bet his lucky coin she'd show up at the hospital.

And he'd be waiting to question her.

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Barbara watched from a distance as Ivy looked out over her yard.

The green-skinned woman had, after Barbara had hacked the police database and found out what happened to Harley, stormed from the kitchen to her front steps.

She'd been sitting on them now for almost two hours, her hands clenched together in front of her, as she gazed into her yard.

Rolling her wheelchair towards the woman, she was no more than three feet away when Ivy spoke.

"I suppose you're wondering why I haven't stormed out of her to kill that damned clown yet," she asked, her voice filled with anger, tension, and regret.

Barbara licked her lips, "The thought had crossed my mind."

Ivy sighed, "I want to, I have since the first minute I discovered he'd laid a hand on Harley." She snorted. "He is everything about men that I hate, rolled into one sadistic package. But as much as I hate him, I care for Harley more."

Barbara frowned confused, and as her thoughts drifted to Ivy, the other woman answered them.

"Yes, killing him would spare her pain, physically at least. But…Harley is fragile, mentally. There's a reason he was able to so quickly seduce her to him, and over time, Joker has only enthralled her more." Ivy licked her lips. "Make no mistake, it is taking everything in me, NOT to go hunt him down. But if I did, if I killed Joker before Harley realized just what he was doing to her, I would be doing something worse."

"What?" Barbara asked.

"Breaking my word to Harley," Ivy answered simply. Sighing, she elaborated, "When Harley first came to me, covered in bruises, I was furious. I knew it wasn't Batman's work, if it had been, she would have been in Police custody. Not to mention she was sobbing as I held her. I demanded to know who had hurt her, I already had my suspicions. Before she'd confirm them however, she made me promise, fucking promise, not to go after him. I could have ignored it and gone after him anyway, I should have…But…at that moment, she needed my comfort more than his death."

Ivy gulped. "I promised her that, until she told me otherwise, I wouldn't go after Joker. As long as there is life in Harley's lungs, I let the Joker live. As long as she tells me to spare him, I let the Joker live. As much as I HATE that clown, I will not break my word to Harley. I'm all she has, and if I do kill him, she won't come to me. As fragile as her mind is, I'm afraid of what she would do if she didn't have me."

The other woman gave her a confused look. "What do you mean?" Barbara asked.

"Harley is obsessed with Joker. If he is killed before she realizes what he's done to her, and she isn't killed at the same time, I truly believe it would push her over the edge. At least, if I'm not the one to kill him, she'll come to me, and I can do damage control. But without me…she'd be lost, completely."

Barbara didn't know what to say. This was an insight into both Ivy and Harley, and the relationship they had with each other.

Suddenly, Ivy shot up, scanning the yard. "Something's here that shouldn't be," she growled, stepping angrily off the steps.

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Fawkes knew he should have stayed the England.

The phoenix had, since he know had a name to go on, been attempting to deliver a letter to the woman known as Poison Ivy. Dumbledore always preferred the diplomatic approach, as you were less likely to be betrayed when your peons worked for you willing, rather than forcibly.

The phoenix, having been influenced by Dumbledore's steady fall from the light due to their bond, didn't think anything of it. And was simply planning on delivering the letter as asked. Sadly, things don't always go as planned, even if you're a phoenix.

The first problem was that he couldn't flash directly to the woman. His flashing ability depended on his fire, and wherever the woman was, it was behind rather uncommon fire wards.

Fire wards were uncommon for a few major reasons. The biggest had to do with the fact that most magical's used fire in their homes. Whether it was for cooking, light, potion brewing, or simply floo travel, fire wards prevented any fire from being inside them. Oh, there were some places that had them, usually smaller buildings such as greenhouses or storage sheds.

But this entire property was surrounded by them.

While annoying, it wasn't really that big a deal to the bird, he enjoyed a good flight every now and then. He didn't mind the numerous plants either…at least, not until his leg was grabbed by a tree.

Soon, other branches grabbed him, and without the ability to use his flames, the phoenix was helpless. He couldn't even burn prematurely! So if he died…that was it.

It was at this point that the red and gold bird began to panic.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" a feminine voice asked. The branches holding the swan-sized bird began to lower, until he was face to face with the woman he had been sent to deliver his message to.

He trilled, hoping to get her help, but for some reason the branches tightened as he did so, so the bird stopped.

Walking forward, the redhead snatched the letter from his claw and opened it. Reading it, she snorted. Looking back at him, she said, "It's really a shame that you chose to bond with Dumbledore. And I'm afraid I know how the familiar bond works, so I know you're not exactly a light phoenix. And while I have no doubts about the defenses of my home, I've got too much on my plate at the moment to deal with the numerous attempts the old fool and his followers are likely to make, once you show them where I live."

She grinned, and the look sent chills down the phoenix's spine.

"For what it's worth, I'm not the least bit sorry."

Suddenly the branches began to tighten.

And soon, Fawkes blacked out, never to fly again.

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After instructing her plants to turn the phoenix to mulch, Ivy began the walk back to her manor. She truly didn't feel sorry for killing the phoenix, perhaps if it had been un-bonded or bonded to someone she trusted, the woman would have let the bird live.

As it was, the bird was too much of a risk to leave alive.

Not to mention that Dumbledore would probably go insane when his beloved bird didn't return.

It was a win-win situation.

Stepping back onto her porch, where Barbara was waiting, the other red-head asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Peachy," Ivy told her sarcastically. "Dumbledore apparently knows who I am now, or at least enough to send his bird after me." Sighing, Ivy said, "I'm going to go up and change, then go see Harley. I don't know how long I'll be gone."

Without waiting for a reply, Ivy stepped into the manor, leaving Barbara behind her.

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**I'm going to be honest, I'm not entirely pleased with this chapter, namely Ivy's reaction to the news of Harley's injury, but after several attempts, this is the one I liked best, and I just want it over and done with as it was so frustrating to write.**

**Also, Harvey isn't going to have to big a part in this, but his niece is. And if you're wondering how he found out about Barbara, people have overheard Jim talking about it to various people, and word got out, especially as I imagine that in a city as dirty as Gotham, there are cops on the take, Harvey's probably has his own officer's in his pocket.**

**Please Review and Checkout the Challenges in My Forums and the stories I have up for adoption, posted under the title ****_Please Adopt Me!_**


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